Sweden to invest in ‘feminist trade policy’

“Trade policy today benefits men more than women. Therefore, the government is now investing in a feminist trade policy that will contribute to the economic development of women and men to an equal extent,” International Trade Minister Ann Linde wrote in an article published in Aftonbladet on Friday.

She pointed to “inexplicable gender-coded differences in customs duties”, which mean that products aimed at women typically have higher duties than those made for men.

The feminist trade policy would also include a focus on gender equality in standardization issues, for example in vehicle safety. Linde states that women are 47 percent more likely than men to be injured in car accidents because safety standards are created based on male bodies.

Another of the policy's aims is to simplify EU-wide trade in the service sector, which employs more women than men, in order to create more jobs and export opportunities, 

Sweden is well known for its feminist foreign policy, which was first launched when Prime Minister Stefan Löfven's centre-left government came to power in 2014 and includes international aid for reproductive health and promotion of women's rights globally.