Economy

Ericsson's future
"Could be the nail in the coffin for Sweden's Silicon Valley"

The Moderates in Stockholm are warning that Kista could become a ghost town after Monday's announcement that Ericsson is moving its headquarters to Hagastaden.

- This could be the nail in the coffin for Kista as Sweden's Silicon Valley and means that Järva will lose its largest employer, says opposition city councilor Christofer Fjellner according to Dagens Nyheter.

He is demanding that Stockholm's Social Democratic government appoint a commission to reverse the trend.

Finance City Councilor Karin Wanngård (S), for her part, is pleased that the telecom giant is not leaving the city and the region.

"It shows the strength of the city's innovative power and international attractiveness," she writes in a comment according to DI.

Today's stock market
Muted concerns in the fixed income market – oil price below $100

Hopes that the US and Iran may be approaching a peace settlement dampened concerns in the bond market on Monday, where several interest rates fell back after last week's gains. Similar movements were seen in the oil market, where the price of a barrel fell below $100.

Haris Khurshid, investment manager at Karobaar Capital, believes that in recent weeks the market has assumed that traffic through the Strait of Hormuz will not be able to resume for a long time.

- But when it became clear that the talks were still ongoing and that the escalation was not accelerating, a large part of that risk premium disappeared quite quickly, he says according to Direkt.

The gig economy
Foodora's owner rushed to the stock market after Uber's bid

The German owner of the food delivery company Foodora, Delivery Hero, jumped 12 percent on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange after competitor Uber made a bid for the company.

This weekend, Delivery Hero confirmed that it had rejected a bid of 33 euros per share, which corresponds to around 10 billion euros, or approximately 108 billion kronor.

According to sources to the Financial Times, Uber has since probed the terrain with a bid of 38 euros per share, or 11.5 billion euros, to one of Delivery Hero's major owners, but was also rejected there.

Judging by today's price reaction, investors believe that Uber will return with a sweetened offer. Delivery Hero's share rose to 37.60 euros, well above the official bid price.

Retail development
E-commerce bounces back despite concerns about war

Despite concerns about the Middle East, Swedish e-commerce sales increased by three percent in April compared to the same month last year, according to the Swedish Trade Association's E-commerce Indicator.

While slightly fewer people shopped online in April compared to the same month last year, the estimated average purchase amount per e-commerce consumer rose.

Svensk Handel's innovation manager Per Ljungberg does not take the positive figures for granted.

- A troubled global situation, especially in the Strait of Hormuz, is causing headaches for many e-commerce companies, he says in a press release.

The upturn in April comes after a dip in March.

Oil market
Oil prices fall and stock markets rise

Oil prices fell sharply on Monday morning after Donald Trump's new statements about Iran this weekend.

On Saturday, the president signaled that an agreement with the country was close, only to announce on Sunday that there was no rush to reach a peace agreement. At the same time, the US relationship with Iran "is becoming much more professional and productive," Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Renewed optimism in the markets causes North Sea Brent oil to fall nearly 6 percent to just under $98 per barrel, while American WTI oil is down just over 6 percent to around $91 per barrel.

Hopes that the Strait of Hormuz will soon open are also lifting Asian stock markets broadly during the morning.