Economy

The crypto market  

Bitcoin rushes towards records: “Everything is rising and everyone is having fun”  

 

Bitcoin price continued up 6 percent on Monday morning, passing $65,000. The record of $69,000 from November 2021 is now within sight, writes Reuters.  

 

The world's largest cryptocurrency is up 50 percent since the turn of the year, supported by the new bitcoin ETFs that have contributed to the buying pressure.  

 

According to 10x Research's head of analysis Markus Thielen, there are no signs that the inflow of capital is about to stop, as optimism is burgeoning at the moment. 

 

Brent Donnelly at the analysis firm Spectra Markets points out that the tech-heavy Nasdaq stock market index recently reached an all-time high. And in such an environment, cryptocurrencies will also perform well.  

 

- We are back to the 2021 type of market where everything rises and everyone has fun, he says.  

 

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US debt ceiling  

New financing plan to prevent shutdowns  

 

The US Congress has presented a plan to fund about a quarter of the country's authorities through September, international media reports.  

 

The $436 billion funding package represents the first real progress toward resolving the recurring threats of shutdowns, Bloomberg writes.  

 

A number of agencies have been left out and are still at risk of subpoena from March 23, including the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security.  

 

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The flight strikes Notice of new German air strike  

 

The German trade union Verdi has again announced a strike for Lufthansa's ground staff. The strike has been announced from Thursday and is planned over two days.  

 

It is unclear exactly how many travelers will be affected by the strike.  

 

At the latest in mid-February, Verdi announced a similar strike which was then expected to affect over 100,000 passengers and around thirty flights to and from Sweden.  

 

The background is disagreements about wages and working conditions.  

 

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Swedish inflation  

Swedbank maintains forecast: "Riksbank lowers in May"  

 

Despite higher expectations for key interest rates in the rest of the world, Swedbank stands by its forecasts for the Riksbank's interest rate path.  

 

This is what the central bank writes in its latest interest rate sheet. "Inflationary pressure is low and by summer inflation is expected to fall below the Riksbank's target. At the same time, the economy is in decline; GDP has stagnated for a couple of years and unemployment is rising," write the analysts.

 

Swedbank expects a first reduction in May and that the policy rate will be adjusted down to 2 percent in 2025.  

 

The forecasts for mortgage interest rates are also left basically unchanged. At the end of the year, households are predicted to pay 3.85 percent in floating average interest and 3.10 at the end of next year.