Swedish economy seen shrinking 4% in 2020 as pandemic hits - fin min

Sweden's gross domestic product is seen shrinking 4% this year as the economy slumps due to the coronavirus outbreak, Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson said on Tuesday. "We have a very serious economic situation, both in Sweden and globally," she told reporters. "This is both a demand and supply shock that is spreading between countries."

The economy shrank 4.2 percent in 2009 from the previous year as the global financial crisis hit demand, the biggest decline in more than 50 years. The government has introduced a raft of measures, including subsidies for shorter working hours, tax rebates and loan guarantees and easier rules for claiming benefits, to ease the blow from the virus outbreak.