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RECESSION

Trade group: ‘Government must act to arrest car sales slide’

In 2008 253,759 new cars were registered in Sweden, a fall of 17.3 percent on 2007, according to preliminary figures from trade group Bil Sweden. Truck sales also declined, by 9.4 percent to 46,152.

Published: 2 January 2009 11:44 CET

In December alone the number of new car registrations dropped 44.9 percent.

The December figures are a wake up call for the government and the industry, Bil Sweden argued.

“The dramatic decline we have seen in the car market over the past couple of months is very worrying. The car industry is of vital importance to the Swedish economy and we consider it high time for the government to introduce measures to stimulate the market,” said Bertil Moldén of Bil Sweden in a press release on Friday.

The doom and gloom is set to continue into 2009, with Bil Sweden forecasting sales of 185,000 cars next year, in comparison to 306,794 in 2007.

“But if the government follows our advice then we estimate that we could push this figure up to 215,000,” Moldén said.

Bil Sweden has announced an eight-point plan to help the government address the slide.

The plan includes tax relief for all new cars for a two year period, the retention of the current eco-car premium, definition and congestion charge exemption in Stockholm. The group would also like to see the retention of free resident parking for eco-cars in Stockholm and the encouragement of other councils to introduce similar schemes.

Furthermore they called for a purchase premium for light trucks equivalent to the amount afforded eco-cars if they meet the tax authority’s definition. Heavy trucks meeting Euro 5 classification should also be exempt from vehicle taxes, they argued.

Bil Sweden called on the government to make assurances that no changes to fuel or other vehicle taxes would made until the crisis passes.

The number of eco-cars sold in Sweden broke all records in 2008, with a 57 percent increase to 84,541, equivalent to a 33.3 percent market share in comparison with 17.6 percent in 2007.

Diesel cars also proved popular with a market share of 36.2 percent in comparison to 34.7 percent in 2007.

ECONOMY

Worst of crisis now behind us, says Germany’s chief banker

Germany has turned the corner on the worst of an economic crisis sparked by the coronavirus pandemic and is now on the path to recovery, the central bank chief of Europe's biggest economy said Sunday.

Published: 21 June 2020 13:29 CEST
Worst of crisis now behind us, says Germany's chief banker
Jens Weidmann. Photo: DPA

“We experienced in the last months the deepest economic slump in Germany's (post-war) history,” Jens Weidmann told Sunday's edition of the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

“The good news is: the trough should be behind us by now, and things are looking up again. But the deep slump is being followed only by a comparatively gradual recovery.”

Weidmann, who has never minced his words against expansionary policies ramped through in the past by the European Central Bank, on Sunday also voiced support for the unprecedented economic rescue and stimulus packages unleashed by Berlin to shield German companies and jobs.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's government had stunned observers in March when it unveiled a rescue package worth 1.1 trillion euros, smashing through a long-held no new debt dogma to fund the measures.

Earlier this month, it said it would plough another 130 billion euros into various schemes, including a cut in VAT, to stimulate the economy.

 

Reacting to comments that Germany, once known as a “frugal” nation, was now dramatically loosening its purse strings, Weidmann said: “The image of the Swabish housewife is often wrongly portrayed.

“She is not saving for the sake of saving, but so that there is money that can be spent sensibly and in case there are difficult times. And that is precisely the case here.”

Like nations across Europe, Germany shut schools, shops and sent workers home from mid-March to halt transmission of the coronavirus.

The impact of the health crisis has pushed the economy into a deep recession believed to be the worst since World War II.

After the rate of new infections dropped sharply, Europe's biggest economy began easing restrictions in early May although social distancing rules are still in place and huge events banned.

Nevertheless, the improved health situation and the huge government support have helped lift sentiment, with a closely-watched survey showing confidence among investors surging to its highest level since before the financial crisis.

 
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