2023.06.0913:56:00UTC+00Swedish Economy Stagnates; Industrial Output Growth Accelerates

Sweden's economy remained unchanged in April after contracting in the previous two months, data from Statistics Sweden showed on Friday.

Separate official data showed that industrial production advanced for the fifth straight month in April and at a faster pace.

Gross domestic product flattened in April after falling slightly by 0.1 percent in March.

"Economic activity remained largely unchanged in April compared to March, with limited changes in several big aggregates," Neda Shahbazi, economist at Statistics Sweden, said.

On a yearly basis, GDP was 0.1 percent lower in April compared to a 0.1 percent gain in the preceding month.

Household consumption climbed 1.2 percent monthly in April, while it showed no variations compared to last year.

Another report showed that industrial production grew 3.4 percent annually in April, faster than the 0.6 percent increase seen in March.

Among sectors, manufacturing production advanced 4.9 percent from a year ago, and that of water works, sewage, and waste disposal grew markedly by 12.3 percent. Meanwhile, mining and quarrying output plunged by 18.3 percent.

Data showed that construction output fell at a stable rate of 4.6 percent in April compared to last year.

Industrial orders dropped slightly by 0.1 percent yearly in April, following an 8.0 percent fall in the preceding month. Monthly, orders rebounded by 3.0 percent.