This newsletter contains news, updates and relevant information from the Swedish American Chambers of Commerce Inc.

WORDS FROM OUR CEO

Greetings from the U.S. capital,

There are many ways to define a good economy. United States is in great shape according to just about any of them. The growth rate is high, the unemployment rate is at historic lows, household wealth is surging, and wages are rising faster than costs, especially for the working class.

From the end of 2019 to the end of 2023, U.S. GDP grew by 8.2 percent—three times as fast as the European Union. In other words, a dollar in 2024 might not go as far as a dollar in 2019, but today the average worker has so many more dollars that they can afford a higher quality of life. The World Bank upgraded its outlook today for the global economy, estimating that it will expand 2.6% this year on the strength of sustained growth in the US. At the same time, the World Bank worries that faltering trade will hold back global growth. The United States and Sweden boast one of the longest and strongest trade relationships in the world, with bilateral investment and trade totaling around $209 billion annually. Not entirely curated by the Swedish American Chambers of Commerce but nevertheless a contributing factor and fuel to the momentum.

In this edition of e-Currents we are treated to more takes on the U.S. economy and the U.S. at large by contributors such as Anders Olshov, Jonas Hellman and André Persson. Additionally, we will walk you through the success Executive Forum of May 30th, whose political panel perfectly coincided with the Trump verdict which added the spice you can imagine. Enjoy the imagery and panel summaries; please feel free to contact me at karin.hammar@sacc-usa.org if you would like further information on content and outcomes. With that we leave you to discover these and many other features of e-Currents.

Best regards,

NEWS FROM SACC-USA

We gathered for a pre-Forum cocktail reception at House of Sweden, enjoying beverages from The Absolut Group, GRO Wines, and Väsen Brewing Company. The evening was highlighted by remarks from SACC-USA CEO Karin Hammar, SACC-USA Chairman Per Cedergren, Marie-Thérèse Allen from Mentor Foundation USA, and Tyler Weaver from Väsen Brewing Company.

The theme of Executive Forum 2024 was "The Future is Now - Outlook and Insights at Crucial Junctures". This theme was present during the day and was reflected in our program, that circulated around the future in many ways, be it for example the rise of AI or the upcoming U.S. Elections. It was a day full of thought-provoking and incisive presentations and panel discussions and in true Executive Forum spirit, a lot of cross-country and cross-industry networking.

Ambassador Urban Ahlin

State Secretary Håkan Jevrell

SACC-USA Chairman Per Cedergren

The AI panel began with Linda Bjork, founder of Mindfulness Intelligence and CEO of Inner Business Institute, who shared wise words on mindfulness and shed light on the importance of brain health. Sometimes we all just need to take a minute to breath...

Then we listened to a conversation between Bjork and Peter Linder, who is Head of Thought Leadership North America at Ericsson. What does it mean to be empowered, not overpowered, by AI?

The dialogue continued with our distinguished panelists representing AI-aware industries. Guided by moderator Zach Helzer from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the panel excelled. We had Joshua Alphonse, Head of Mobile Robotics at ABB, Fredrik Nilsson, Axis Communications Vice President of the Americas and Zeljka Lemaster, Global AI Accelerator at Ericsson.

Left to right: Zach Helzer, Joshua Alphonse, Fredrik Nilsson, Zeljka Lemaster

Sasko Cuklev joined us and delivered a sharp presentation on autonomous driving. With many years of experience working within Volvo, where he currently serves as head of On-Road Solutions at Volvo Autonomous Solutions, Sasko's insights were engaging and compelling.

During the day we presented the winner of the 2024 SACC-USA Business Award together with Dagens Industri. Swedish training equipment company, Eleiko, won the prize, and Eleiko USA President Magnus Nyberg was present to receive the award. Congratulations!

Left to right: Karin Hammar, Magnus Nyberg, Peter Fellman (Dagens Industri)

Last year's Business Award winner was IOWN Renewable Energy Inc. The founderand CEO of IOWN, Hans-Christian Schulze, couldn't make it to the Forum unfortunately, but shared a video for us to show on screen.

We brought State Secretary Håkan Jevrell back on stage to share some insights from the world of global trade dynamics, together with Scholl Chair and Senior Advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, William A. Reinsch, in a panel moderated by Nancy Fischer, International Trade and Global Regulatory Leader at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP.

Left to right: Nancy Fischer, Håkan Jevrell, William A. Reinsch

For this panel we had Elisabeth Braw, senior fellow at Atlantic Council and author of the book Goodbye Globalization, moderating a discussion on the future of supply chain management. We learnt about concepts such as "friendshoring" and the security implications of trading vs. producing for self-sufficiency. We had the great pleasure of welcoming Elizabeth Tate from Albright Stonebridge Group, Michaela Wallin from H&M and Jonathan Milläng from Ethos International.

Left to right: Elisabeth Braw, Elizabeth Tate, Michaela Wallin, Jonathan Milläng

Elisabeth Braw's book 'Goodbye Globalization' is "A bold new account of the state of globalization today—and what its collapse might mean for the world economy"

Special offer:

30% off when purchased via the Yale University Press US website https://yalebooks.yale.edu/ or calling 1-800-405-1619

Enter code Y24EBCONF when prompted in the checkout. The offer is available to customers in the U.S. and Canada. Offer code expires on July 6 2023.

We heard some remarks from Signhild Arnegård Hansen, former SACC-USA Chairman 2022-2024. We thank her for all of her valuable work and contributions to our network. Luckily for us she remains on our board in her capacity as immediate past Chairman.

Our colleagues from regional chamber in Chicago informed about SACC Summit 2024, which will be held in Chicago in September. Read more here.

Rachel Rizzo, Nonresident Senior Fellow at Atlantic Council Europe Center, joined us and held an insightful scene setter on the topic of NATO prior to the Ambassadors discussion on the same topic. Rachel revealed the lesser-known stumbling blocks and breakthroughs leading up to Swedish NATO membership.

In a panel moderated by Christopher Swift, Partner at Foley & Lardner LLP, we welcomed four Ambassadors on stage to discuss NATO.

Urban Ahlin is the Ambassador of Sweden to the U.S. With him on stage was the former U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, Thomas L. Siebert. We also had Philip T. Reeker, former U.S. Ambassador to North Macedonia and William B. Taylor, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine. Their riveting revelations under the Chatham House rule, alas will have to stay with Executive Forum goers.

Left to right: Ambassador Philip T. Reeker, Ambassador Thomas L. Siebert, Mr. Christopher Swift, Ambassador Urban Ahlin, Ambassador William B. Taylor

Dr. Eugene B. Kogan, who teaches at Harvard, joined us to give a presentation about geopolitical trendlines and their impact on global businesses. Specifically, he referenced and explained the premise of the Art of the Deal by Donald J. Trump and recommended further reading thereof.

Political panels are a SACC-USA must have! This time, the panel unexpectedly aligned with the verdict in the Trump case, a timing we're going to remember for a long time. The much talked about panel was a high note to end on.

We had the great pleasure of having Steve Scully, former C-Span producer, moderating the panel. On stage we also had MSNBC news anchor Michael Steele, the former Director of Strategic Communication, Donald J. Trump for President, Inc., Marc Lotter, ABC News Political Director Rick Klein and Lanny Davis, former Special Counsel to President Clinton.

Left to right: Steve Scully, Michael Steele, Marc Lotter, Rick Klein, Lanny Davis

We extend our sincere gratitude to all speakers, guests, and sponsors whose contributions were integral to this event's success. We are grateful to have the opportunity to organize this event annually and the support it garners. Thank you all for your participation and commitment!

POLICY CORNER

Anders Olshov är chef för och grundare av tankesmedjan Intelligence Watch. Han är utbildad ekonom vid Handelshögskolan i Stockholm och har en post-graduate degree från Amsterdam School of International Relations. Han har arbetat som ekonomisk-politisk journalist vid bl.a. Dagens Industri och Finanstidningen.

Han arbetade som makroekonom och ränte- och valutaanalytiker på Carnegie Investment Bank 1992-1994 och Nordea 1994-2002 samt som professorassistent i Finance vid European University Institute första halvåret 1998. Han grundade Öresundsinstitutet 2002 och var dess chef till 2014. I december 2015 grundade han Intelligence Watch. År 2010 utsågs han till årets ekonom i Skåne av Ekonomiforum Skåne/EFL (Executive Foundation Lund). Hans bok Øresundsregionen - Københavns outnyttjade möjlighet utgavs av Gyldendal förlag på svenska och danska 2013.

Intelligence Watch är en allmännyttig, oberoende tankesmedja för hållbar utveckling

med fokus på miljö, ekonomi och sociala frågor. Genom kvalificerad analys och forskning, framtidsspaning och opinionsbildning inom dessa områden och därtill hörande tvärvetenskapliga områden som stadsbyggnad, hälsa och kommunikation med mera bidrar tankesmedjan till ett bättre Sverige och en bättre värld. Intelligence Watch har sin bas i Skåne och drivs som ett offentligt-privat samarbete utan vinstintresse och med finansiering från företag, offentliga organisationer och akademi.

Stadsbildningen Malmö-Lund för tankarna till New York

Malmö och Lund håller på att växa ihop till en stad - ett internationellt affärs- och forskningscenter. Invånare från 186 länder, världsledande materialforskning och tio direktdestinationer till Nordamerika lyfter staden till en högre nivå. Skalan är mindre, men likheterna med New York Citys bildande 1898 finns där.

När Manhattan, Staten Island, Brooklyn, Bronx och Queens konsoliderades till New York City 1898, till världens näst största stad efter London, var det en unik händelse. Befolkningen hade ökat kraftigt i decennier - som européernas port till land, drömmar och frihet - till 3,4 miljoner invånare, Brooklyn Bridge hade öppnat 1883 och planerna för ett metrosystem som skulle binda ihop staden var i full gång. Den äldsta delen av metron hade öppnat 1885, ett avtal om ett större system slöts 1894 och 1904 öppnade den första nya linjen.

Skalan är annorlunda, men när Malmö och Lund tillsammans med de tre mindre kommunerna Burlöv, Lomma och Staffanstorp växer samman funktionellt till en stad och ett kreativt affärs- och forskningscenter finns paralleller. Befolkningen har under 2000-talet ökat med 37 procent till 565 000 invånare i stadskärnan (till ytan mindre än Göteborgs kommun) och runt 4 miljoner invånare inklusive det nära omlandet i Skåne och på danska Själland inom en timmes avstånd.

Likaså spelar utbyggnaden av infrastrukturen en avgörande roll. Järnvägen har upplevt en renässans och har byggts ut till fyra spår mellan Malmö och Lund, med Citytunneln genom Malmö, Lommabanan, Trelleborgsbanan och återöppnandet av Kontinententalbanan. Nya tågstationer har tillkommit. Öresundsförbindelsen som öppnade 2000 förbinder staden med Copenhagen Airport endast 12 minuter bort och ger Malmö-Lund direktflyg till de tio nordamerikanska städerna Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, Montreal, New York, Philadelphia, San Fransisco, Toronto och Washington. Varje år reser 3,5 miljoner svenskar från flygplatsen. Därutöver pågår anläggandet av Femern Bältförbindelsen som planeras att öppna 2029, vilken kommer att korta restiden mellan Malmö-Lund och Hamburg i Tyskland till tre timmar och skapa förutsättningar för symbios med Europas största ekonomi.

Den ökade befolkningen och infrastruktursatsningarna har bidragit till att integrera arbets- och bostadsmarknaderna i de fem kommunerna. Invånarna och näringslivet känner numera att de verkar i ett större stadsområde. Det har inte gått så långt att det talas om att kommunerna skall slås samman till en kommun – såsom skedde med New Yorks fem boroughs efter att lokala folkomröstningar hållits. Intelligence Watch, Skånes ledande tankesmedja, har istället föreslagit en mjukare form av politisk integration: att kommunerna består, men att den pågående stadsbildningen manifesteras med en stadsstadga för att samarbeta inom väl definierade nyckelområden.

Den politiska processen är långsam och kan antas pågå över en längre tid. Andra politiska processer främjar dock stadens utveckling. Till dessa hör Sveriges EU-medlemskap 1995 och NATO-medlemskapet 2024, som gör staden till Sveriges mest centralt belägna i förhållande till handelspartners och allierade i EU, Storbritannien, USA och Kanada. Läget var också starkt bidragande till att Eurovision Song Contest – världens största livesända musiktävling -

nyligen arrangerades i Malmö, liksom handbolls-VM för herrar och bordtennis-EM 2023 och innebandy-VM senare i år.

Malmö-Lunds nya centrumläge gör staden attraktivare och ger den möjlighet att utvecklas till en internationell nod i Skandinavien, inte minst då Sverige är den klart största marknaden i Norden. Många internationella företag föredrar en etablering i Malmö-Lund framför Danmarks huvudstad Köpenhamn då den svenska marknaden är nästan dubbelt så stor som den danska. Det är något Malmö-Lund blivit varse. Japan Business & Innovation Hub är ett exempel på hur Malmö-Lund, uppbackad av föreningen Japan Bridge Scandinavia, tar initiativ för att bli en nod för affärsutbytet med Japan där företag som Canon (som förvärvat Axis), Sony och Fanuc utmärker sig med stor närvaro i Malmö-Lund och Tetra Pak, Alfa Laval och Ikea exporterar åt andra hållet.

Lika viktigt för staden är kunskapsnivån. Lunds universitet rankas normalt bland världens 100 främsta och Malmö högskola blev universitet 2018. Universitetsmiljöerna har bidragit till en sällsynt välutbildad befolkning. Hela 3,0 procent av befolkningen har forskarutbildning, vilket kan jämföras med 2,2 procent i Stockholms och Göteborgs kommuner och det svenska rikssnittet på 1,4 procent.

Något som kommer att ge avkastning kommande decennier är investeringarna i de två partikel- och materialforskningsanläggningarna European Spallation Source (ESS) och MAX IV i Lund. De utgör de två största forskningssatsningarna i Sverige någonsin (på uppskattningsvis 50 miljarder kronor i dagens penningvärde) och attraherar några av världens främsta hjärnor inom partikelfysik. Att professor Anne L’Huillier vid Lunds universitet fick nobelpriset i fysik kan vara en föraning om vad som komma skall. Det var heller ingen tillfällighet att Frankrikes president Emmanuel Macron besökte just ESS, som finansieras delvis med franska pengar, under sitt statsbesök i Sverige 30-31 januari.



Avslutningsvis är Malmö, liksom New York, en internationell hamnstad som historiskt stått för öppenhet och immigration: under medeltidens danska stad var det tyskar och holländare, 1943-1945 judar, 1992 flyktingar från det forna Jugoslavien och under senare decennier är det flyktingar och anhöriga från Mellanöstern som anlänt. New Yorks mediaföretag motsvaras i Malmö av kreativa dataspelsföretag. Ingen av städerna är huvudstäder, utan kommersiella, kreativa nav i den globala ekonomin där affärer och kultur har högre prioritet än politiskt maktspel. Det är som en invandrad företagsledare uttryckte det: ”Här förverkligar jag The Swedish Dream”.

Anders Olshov

Jonas Hellman is a Swedish consultant, author, and journalist. He is a co-founder of the research and analysis company United Minds, which have developed into a global brand. Since 2023, he has been working as a senior public affairs advisor at Geelmuyden Kiese, a Scandinavian consulting firm with offices in Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm. He lives in Stockholm but has previously lived and worked in New York City and in India's business capital, Mumbai.

Sweden's ‘special relationship’ with the United States has now become official

Russia's invasion of Ukraine permeates European politics and creates a completely new security situation. The threat of an escalation means that old political deadlocks can suddenly be called into question. In just a few months, it became domestically possible for Sweden to abandon 200 years of non-alignment and apply for membership in NATO.

Sweden’s turnaround was carried out under broad political agreement and with few raising objections. This would hardly have been possible if most Swedes did not have a positive view of the United States. In practice there was no doubt as to which side the Swedes would stand on, in a conflict between the West and Russia. But the NATO accession was nevertheless a major political step for Sweden, probably the biggest since the country joined the EU almost 30 years ago. Once and for all, it shatters Sweden's former self-image as a neutral country between western democracies and countries with other political systems.

The complicated processes to get Sweden's membership application accepted by the member countries Turkey and Hungary, rather strengthen Sweden's relationship with the United States. The strong relationship was manifested through Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's participation in President Joe Biden's State of the Union speech on March 7, where Biden welcomed Sweden as a new member of NATO. Afterwards, Kristersson directed a very special thank you to Biden for his personal commitment to securing Sweden's NATO membership.

Britain's ‘special relationship’ with the United States is well known and talked about. However, Sweden also has a special relationship with the United States, which until recently has been more difficult to officially recognize. It stretches far back in history, to the extensive Swedish migration to North America. Both Sweden and the US are democracies that value principles of justice, freedom of expression, and the right of individuals to shape their own lives. The view of the government is different in the two countries, but in many issues, Sweden is closer to the US than to France, Germany, and other major EU members. This is evident not least when it comes to the attitude towards AI and other technological advances. The US and Sweden are innovating, while other parts of the EU are more focused on regulation and regard new technological solutions primarily as threats.

The policy of neutrality has long meant that Sweden has been forced to hide its positive view of the US. With Sweden’s NATO membership, the need for smudging has finally ended. Sweden is increasingly taking over Britain's former role within the EU, of being America's main ally and like-minded country.

Of course, this only applies as long as the US stands firm to its traditional values. If the US decides to abandon Ukraine and takes a stand against international competition and openness, its special relationship with Sweden will quickly deteriorate. From an American perspective, this may not be perceived as problematic, but it means that an important chance for the US to exercise soft power is lost.

Jonas Hellman

Vem blir Trumps bästis efter domen?

Att Donald Trump fälldes i ett brottmål hindrar honom knappast från att ställa upp i presidentvalet. Den stora frågan vid sommarens konvent blir i stället vem han väljer som kandidat till vicepresident.

Read the text (in Swedish) here

André Persson is Chief Communications Officer at SACC-USA and President and Chairman of the Board at SACC Houston. He writes and reports about American economy and politics in Swedish news magazine Fokus.

UPDATES FROM MEMBERS

Picture from Axis website of the Q1961-XTE Explosion - Protected Thermal Camera

What are the interns writing?

SACC-USA Welcomes Georgetown University Students

'Sustainable real estate' students from Georgetown University visited House of Sweden in order to get acquainted with Swedish architecture before they'd participate in a trip to Stockholm.

..."Wingårdh and Hansen’s design for House of Sweden is centrally focused on three typically unusual components in an embassy: openness, transparency, and closeness to nature."

Read more about the history of House of Sweden and the student's visit there in this article, written by Elias Homer.

These two articles were written by Elias Homer, a visiting intern we had the great pleasure of welcoming to our SACC-USA office in Washington, D.C. Elias stayed with us for approximately three weeks this spring during his High School externship. We thank him for his great work and wish him good luck in his future endeavors!

Elias pictured in the middle alongside CEO Karin Hammar and our "full-time" interns on his last day.

Allen Wheatcroft, a Chicago- and Sörmland-based photographer, has recently published two photobooks – one featuring the Trosa area of Sörmland along with a companion book on his permanent home, the Northside of Chicago. Allen and his wife are active members of the Swedish American Museum in Andersonville.

Through distinctive color palettes reflecting the two places where he lives, the photographer reflects complex emotions about his two homes. By documenting both the northern environs of Chicago and the Swedish countryside and presenting the books as two nested parts of a single project, Wheatcroft invites the viewer to reflect on and compare these two distinct geographic spaces – and perhaps to consider their own emotional responses to these places.

Wheatcroft pictured with his camera in NYC during the AIPAD photo show

Ordering: Both books are published by Workshop Arts, a Brooklyn publisher of fine photobooks. The Northside and Björkevägen (Birch Road) were launched at April’s AIPAD photo fair in New York City and are now available at https://www.allenwheatcroft.com/books.

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