Sweden now considers adopting the euro: ‘We are in a new world, it’s right to evaluate’

Brussels – Sweden in the euro, why not? Faced with a changing world, the Scandinavian country is beginning to consider new options, including adopting the single currency and joining the eurozone. Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson said so on the sidelines of today’s Ecofin Council meeting (17 February) in Brussels. She received a clear, precise question from reporters about the possibility of overturning the referendum that effectively rejected the euro, and her answer was optimistic.

“We are in a new world, from a geopolitical and economic point of view, and I think it is right to examine whether it would be good or bad for Sweden to have the euro in the future,” Stockholm’s finance minister said. These words do not indicate an intention to join the eurozone, but they do break another taboo – after neutrality and NATO entry – and demonstrate a willingness to explore the path to a new Eurozone enlargement. In any case, even if Sweden were to decide to replace the krona, this “will not happen in the next two years,” Svantesson added. 

We need to “see what is good for the Swedish economy,” and then to convince public opinion. Sweden is still bound by the 2003 referendum in which voters rejected the currency switch. A new referendum would therefore be needed, along with an information campaign. Svantesson wastes no time and begins by pointing out that only the current US administration offers reasons to reconsider past choices. “Our economy is now Trump-proof; we are making it resilient, but turbulence and unpredictability are very strong,” she said. The US president is creating the paradox of greater integration, at least in theory.