Sweden's central bank hikes key interest rate, saying inflation is still too high
Sweden’s central bank has raised its key interest rate, saying the “inflationary pressures in the Swedish economy are still too high.” STOCKHOLM -- Sweden’s central bank raised its key interest rate Thursday, saying that “inflationary pressures in the Swedish economy are still too high,” although there were signs that inflation had begun to fall. The Riksbank raised its policy rate by a quarter of a percentage point to 4% and said its forecast indicated that it could be raised further. ”I NFL ation is also falling in Sweden. The rate of increase in energy and food prices has slowed significantly, which is positive,” the Riksbank said in a statement. But the bank added that “inflation pressures are still too high,” noting that service prices are still rising rapidly and Sweden's currency, the krona, is “unjustifiably weak.” The Swedish currency has plunged to its lowest level ever against the euro and the U.S. dollar. Sweden has been struggling with high inflation — it was 7.5% in A...