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☆ Sweden's NATO bid delayed in Turkish parliament
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Huseyin Hayatsever | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsANKARA, Nov 16 (Reuters) - The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission delayed a vote on Sweden's NATO membership bid on Thursday in a further setback to the Nordic country's hopes of joining the Western alliance after 18 months of waiting. "For all of our lawmakers to approve Sweden's NATO membership, they need to be fully convinced. While there is no clear timeframe on approving the purchase request for the F-16s, Ankara has linked the issue to Sweden's bid. Some analysts say Turkey's parliament could fully ratify the bid by a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on Nov. 28-29. While NATO member Hungary has also not ratified Sweden's membership, Turkey is seen as the main roadblock to Sweden's accession.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Fuat Oktay, Tayyip Erdogan's, Oktay, Erdogan, Finland's, Burak, Ali Sahin, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Christina Fincher Organizations: NATO, REUTERS, Rights, Nordic, Kurdistan Workers, European Union, AK Party, White, Sweden's, Thomson Locations: Rights ANKARA, Turkish, Swedish, Sweden, Finland, Ukraine, Turkey, embargoes, United States, Stockholm, Canada, Netherlands, Ankara, Brussels, Gaza, Moscow, Russia, Hungary, U.S, Hungarian, Budapest

☆ Explainer: What Turkey gained in delaying Sweden's NATO bid
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Huseyin Hayatsever | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

NATO, Turkish, Swedish and Finnish flags are seen in this illustration taken May 18, 2022. Last year, Stockholm reversed a ban on exporting military equipment to Turkey, without revealing details of companies or products. WHAT HAVE OTHER NATO MEMBERS DONE? In October, Erdogan sent Sweden's NATO bid to Turkey's parliament for consideration. But it has faced objections in the U.S. Congress over Turkey's delaying NATO enlargement and its human rights record.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Gunnar Strommer, Jens Stoltenberg, Thomas Goffus, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Alex Richardson Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Turkish, NATO, Stockholm, Kurdistan Workers ' Party, European Union, Canada, SWEDEN GO, U.S . Congress, Kurdish, Hamas, U.S, Thomson Locations: Rights ANKARA, Ukraine, Turkey, Hungary, Sweden, Stockholm, Helsinki, Washington, SWEDEN, FINLAND, Madrid, Finland, Kurdistan, Ankara, United States, Netherlands, Brussels, Gaza

☆ US Is 'Confident' Sweden Will Soon Join NATO - US Envoy to Hungary
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - The United States is "confident" that Sweden will soon be a member of NATO, the U.S. ambassador to Hungary said on Thursday, adding he had been assured by the Hungarian government that Budapest would not be the last to ratify the bid. Relations between Budapest and Washington have soured because of Hungary's foot-dragging over the ratification of Sweden's NATO accession and also over Prime Minister Viktor Orban's warm ties with Moscow despite the war in Ukraine. "I have been repeatedly assured at the senior-most levels of this government that Hungary will not be last to ratify Sweden’s accession to NATO," Ambassador David Pressman said. Sweden's NATO membership is still pending ratification by Turkey and Hungary. Orban's Fidesz was expected to submit the bill to parliament on Tuesday, but it has been delayed.

Persons: Viktor Orban's, David Pressman, Orban, Vladimir Putin's, Pressman, Putin, that's, Krisztina, Gareth Jones Organizations: NATO, Fidesz Locations: BUDAPEST, United States, Sweden, U.S, Hungary, Hungarian, Budapest, Washington, Moscow, Ukraine, Turkey, Russia, Beijing

☆ Awkward Allies: Gaza Overshadows Erdogan's Germany Visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

Tayyip Erdogan's first visit to Germany since 2020 comes ahead of municipal elections at which he hopes to win back the cities of Ankara and Istanbul. In a sign of the visit's importance, Scholz took pains not to respond directly to Erdogan's loud condemnation of Israel's war against Hamas, in which many thousands of Palestinians have been killed. The response was decidedly mild given the fierce condemnation that far more muted criticisms of Israel typically draw in Germany, traditionally one of Israel's closest allies. Germany has expressed strong solidarity with Israel, while urging a focus on limiting the impact of the war on Gaza's civilians. With some three million people with Turkish roots in Germany such encounters are always fraught, but now the risk was judged too great.

Persons: Thomas Escritt BERLIN, Tayyip Erdogan's, Erdogan, Olaf Scholz's, Scholz, Israel's, Israel, Aydin Yasar, It's, Thomas Escritt, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: European Union, Eurofighter Typhoon, Airbus, Hamas, German, SWP, NATO Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, Germany, Berlin, Ankara, Istanbul, Turkey, Israel, Gaza, Turkish, Stockholm, Greece, Europe

☆ Joshua and Wilder to fight separate opponents in Dec. 23 Saudi mega-show
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Britain's Joshua, the former WBA, IBF and WBO champion, will take on Sweden's Otto Wallin while American Wilder, the former WBC champion, faces New Zealand's Joseph Parker at Riyadh's Kingdom Arena. Parker is also a former WBO champion. Joshua and Wilder could fight each other next year if both win in Riyadh. Ukrainian Usyk had been due to fight WBC champion Tyson Fury for the undisputed crown in Riyadh on Dec. 23 but that has been put back to give the Briton more time after a bruising non-title fight with Francis Ngannou. Joshua told reporters last month that a fight between him and Wilder could be staged on the undercard of the Usyk v Fury clash.

Persons: Anthony Joshua, Otto Wallin, Peter Cziborra, Deontay Wilder, Britain's Joshua, Sweden's Otto Wallin, American Wilder, Zealand's Joseph Parker, Parker, Joshua, Wilder, Dmitry Bivol, Britain's Lyndon Arthur, Jai Opetaia, Britain's Ellis Zorro, Daniel Dubois, Oleksandr Usyk, Jarrell Miller, Usyk, Tyson Fury, Francis Ngannou, Boxing's Eddie Hearn, Frank Warren, " Hearn, I've, Alan Baldwin, Ed Osmond Organizations: Queensberry, Riyadh Season Press, OVO, WBA, IBF, WBO, WBC, Riyadh's, Australian WBC, AJ, Thomson Locations: Riyadh, London, Britain, Saudi Arabia, Australian, British, Poland, Saudi

☆ Turkish parliament commission to debate Sweden NATO bid Thursday
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NATO, Turkish, Swedish and Finnish flags are seen in this illustration taken May 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsANKARA, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The Turkish parliament's foreign affairs commission will debate a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership on Thursday, according to the official agenda of the commission. President Tayyip Erdogan submitted the bill to parliament for ratification three weeks ago, in a move welcomed by NATO and Stockholm. The bill must be approved by parliament's foreign affairs commission before a vote by the full general assembly. NATO foreign ministers will meet in Brussels on Nov. 28-29.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Tayyip Erdogan, Erdogan, Jonathan Spicer Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, NATO, Thomson Locations: Rights ANKARA, Turkish, Stockholm, Turkey, Ankara, Sweden, Brussels, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary

☆ Sweden's SBB posts bigger Q3 loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Marie Mannes/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSTOCKHOLM, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Debt-laden Swedish property group SBB (SBBb.ST) reported a widening of its pre-tax loss in the third quarter on Monday. The landlord, which owns properties across Sweden including hospitals and care homes, reported a pre-tax loss of 3.13 billion Swedish crowns ($287 million) for continuing operations, compared to a loss of a revised 2.56 billion a year ago. This was weaker than Carlsquare analyst Bertil Nilsson's expectation of a loss of 2 billion crowns. SBB slashed its property values by 3.52 billion crowns in the quarter, after analysts had warned property values in the sector could continue to see pressure from high interest rates. Its net operating income came in at 0.93 billion crowns, down from revised 1.02 billion a year earlier.

Persons: Marie Mannes, Bertil Nilsson's, Greta Rosen Fondahn, Terje Solsvik Organizations: SBB, REUTERS, Rights, Brookfield, Thomson Locations: Stockholm, Sweden, Rights STOCKHOLM, Swedish

☆ EU sees pragmatist in Brexit vote instigator Cameron on his return
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Philip Blenkinsop | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

As prime minister, Cameron called the referendum on European Union membership in 2016, although he campaigned for Britain to remain in the EU. "Welcome back David Cameron," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, soon after Cameron was appointed as Foreign Secretary in a cabinet reshuffle by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. Another EU diplomat said Cameroon's absence from politics for seven years meant he was partly an unknown quantity, but felt he was more a pragmatist than not. Cleverly's term as foreign minister, under Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, led to a turnaround in post-Brexit EU-UK ties, thawing from stubborn, bitter stand-offs to pragmatic negotiations yielding results. Sefcovic credited his past year working with Cleverly with "putting EU-UK relations back on track", adding that he looked forward to continuing this work with Cameron.

Persons: David Cameron's, Cameron, David Cameron, Mark Rutte, Rishi Sunak, Maros, James, Sefcovic, Philip Blenkinsop, Andreas Rinke, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: European Union, Britain, Twitter, Conservative, EU, European, NATO, Russia, Thomson Locations: BRUSSELS, Britain, EU, Northern Ireland, Ireland, Berlin

☆ Daniel Ek's daily routine: Spotify's Swedish CEO does his best thinking on morning walks and sometimes doesn't start his work day until 11 a.m.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-08 | by ( Kylie Kirschner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Spotify CEO Daniel Ek starts his day later than many other major CEOs. After his walk, Ek sets time aside to read for 30 minutes to an hour — sometimes the news, but also an "ever-rotating stack of books." AdvertisementAdvertisementEk's work day usually starts around 10:30 a.m., but sometimes might even start later. On a 2020 episode of the Tim Ferriss show, Ek said he didn't start his work day until 11 a.m. that morning. During the work day, Ek likes to keep his calendar relatively open, unless he's traveling and can't keep to his normal schedule.

Persons: Daniel Ek, Ek, —, he's, — Read, Tim Cook, Steve Squeri, he'll, Tim Ferriss, Forbes Organizations: Service, Apple, Spotify Locations: Swedish, unwind

☆ Elon Musk, who hates unions, has to deal with a rare strike at Tesla after his Swedish workers walked out
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-05 | by ( Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Swedish union is leading strikes against Tesla to secure a collective labor agreement. AdvertisementAdvertisementTesla is facing growing strike action in Sweden over its refusal to accept a collective labor agreement. Not all Tesla employees are participating in the strikes, however. Musk has consistently rejected calls for his staff to unionise, tweeting in 2018 that Tesla employees could lose their stock options if they did so. The factory has reportedly seen an unusually high number of work-related accidents and IG Metall says union signups among Tesla workers have surged.

Persons: Tesla, —, Elon Musk's, Musk, Elon, Christiane Benner, Metall, Benner Organizations: Service, IF Metall, Tesla, The New York Times, Metall, UAW, Bloomberg, United Auto Workers Locations: Sweden, Swedish, tweeting, Europe, Berlin

☆ Erdogan Says He Will Try to Facilitate Sweden's NATO Bid Ratification
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

ANKARA (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he would try to facilitate the parliamentary ratification of Sweden's NATO membership as much as possible, but added that Stockhom had still not taken sufficient action on Kurdish militants. Erdogan submitted a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership bid to parliament for ratification last month, a move welcomed by the alliance and Stockholm. Erdogan also said planned talks in parliament about Turkey's 2024 state budget would now take priority, suggesting that the approval of Sweden's NATO membership might not be rapid. "But we will try to facilitate the work (on ratifying Sweden's NATO bid) as much as possible. Finland's membership was sealed in April, but Sweden's bid had been held up by Turkey and Hungary.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Stockhom, Erdogan, Haberturk, Jason Neely, Gareth Jones Organizations: NATO, Kurdistan Workers Party Locations: ANKARA, Stockholm, Turkey, Kazakhstan, embargoes, Sweden, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary

☆ Erdogan says he will try to facilitate Sweden's NATO bid ratification
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ANKARA, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said he would try to facilitate the parliamentary ratification of Sweden's NATO membership as much as possible, but added that Stockhom had still not taken sufficient action on Kurdish militants. Erdogan submitted a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership bid to parliament for ratification last month, a move welcomed by the alliance and Stockholm. Erdogan also said planned talks in parliament about Turkey's 2024 state budget would now take priority, suggesting that the approval of Sweden's NATO membership might not be rapid. "But we will try to facilitate the work (on ratifying Sweden's NATO bid) as much as possible. Finland's membership was sealed in April, but Sweden's bid had been held up by Turkey and Hungary.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Stockhom, Erdogan, Haberturk, Jason Neely, Gareth Jones Organizations: NATO, Kurdistan Workers Party, Thomson Locations: ANKARA, Stockholm, Turkey, Kazakhstan, embargoes, Sweden, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary

REUTERS/Jonathan... Acquire Licensing Rights Read moreAMMAN, Nov 4 (Reuters) - U.S.-allied Arab states will press Secretary of State Antony Blinken for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza at a meeting of foreign ministers in Amman on Saturday, as Washington tries to persuade Israel to agree to temporary pauses to allow in aid. Health officials in Hamas-run Gaza say more than 9,250 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks since then. Blinken is in Amman for meetings with Arab officials after visiting Tel Aviv on Friday. After meeting Blinken on Friday, Netanyahu said Israel refused a temporary ceasefire that did not include the release of hostages. Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati stressed the urgent need for a ceasefire in Gaza during a meeting with Blinken in Jordan on Saturday, Mikati's office said.

Persons: Antony Blinken, Philippe Lazzarini, Jonathan, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Blinken, Matthew Miller, Netanyahu, Blinken's, David Satterfield, Satterfield, King Abdullah of Jordan, Olaf Scholz, Najib Mikati, Mikati, Miller, Tom Perry, Alexandra Hudson Organizations: UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, Hamas, REUTERS, Washington, United, Israeli, Health, Tel, NATO, Saudi, State Department, Alexandra Hudson Our, Thomson Locations: East, Israel, Palestinian, Amman, Jordan, AMMAN, Gaza, United States, Food, Tel Aviv, Turkey, Jordanian, U.S, Middle East, Rafah, Iraqi, Iran, Tehran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon

☆ BT rises after quarterly earnings beat forecasts
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A BT Group Plc logo on a EE/BT Group Plc store in London, UK, on Wednesday, May 17, 2023. BT Group, Britain's biggest broadband and mobile provider, posted a second quarter earnings beat and forecast annual cash flow at the top end of a range, lifting its shares in a parting boost for outgoing CEO Philip Jansen. Shares in BT jumped 5% in early deals, good news for Jansen who is due to step down early next year and has long said he has been disappointed by the group's stock performance. Her job will be to complete Jansen's multi-billion pound push into fibre networks and extending 5G networks, the cost of which has hit free cash flow and weighed on the share price. For the three months to the end of September, BT posted a 3% rise in adjusted core profit (EBITDA) to 2.06 billion pounds ($2.51 billion) beating the 2.03 billion pounds consensus forecast.

Persons: Philip Jansen, Jansen, Hargreaves, Matt Britzman, Allison Kirkby, Sweden's Organizations: BT, BT Group Plc, BT Group Locations: London

☆ BT maintains 2024 outlook after Q2 core profit beat
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 2 (Reuters) - BT Group (BT.L), Britain's biggest broadband and mobile provider, posted second quarter earnings slightly ahead of forecasts putting it on track to meet 2024 guidance, in one of the outgoing CEO's final announcements. Strong cost controls helped BT post a 3% rise in adjusted core profit (EBITDA) to 2.06 billion pounds ($2.51 billion) for the three months to the end of September, beating the 2.03 billion pounds consensus forecast. "These results show that BT Group is delivering and on target: we're rapidly building and connecting customers to our next generation networks, we're simplifying our products and services," Jansen said in a statement on Thursday. The quarterly result meant BT maintained its outlook to grow revenue and profits for its current 2024 financial year, and the group said it expected free cash flow towards the top end of its 1 billion to 1.2 billion pound range. ($1 = 0.8215 pounds)Reporting by Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru and Sarah Young in London; Editing by Savio D'Souza and James DaveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Allison Kirkby, Sweden's, Philip Jansen, Jansen, Yadarisa, Sarah Young, Savio D'Souza, James Davey Organizations: BT, Britain's, Sweden's Telia, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru, London

☆ Swedish architects are building skyscrapers out of wood laminates glued together. The material is shockingly sturdy.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

In Sweden, architects are attempting to journey back to the days before concrete, bricks, and steel, and building impressive towers made with timber, The Washington Post reported. The architects told the Post that, at least in the heavily forested areas of Sweden, wood-based architecture is the future of sustainable building for several reasons. The building material's emissions have grown faster than most other single sources of carbon dioxide thanks to their increased demand and production, Inside Climate News reported. In places like West Africa , architects like Diébédo Francis Kéré are turning back to traditional building materials like soil, stone, and vegetation as sustainable building materials . "The built environment — as it is built now — is not sustainable," Michael Green, the author of "The Case for Tall Wood Buildings," told the Post.

Persons: —, Robert Schmitz, Therese Kreisel, Sara, JONATHAN NACKSTRAND, White Arkitekter, Sara center's, Diébédo Francis Kéré, Michael Green Organizations: Service, Washington Post, Post, Sara Cultural Center, Getty, Sweden doesn't, Climate, University of Rochester, World Steel Association Locations: Sweden, Skelleftea, AFP, Stockholm, Europe, Asia, West Africa

☆ Turkish parliament won't speed up Sweden's NATO bid -committee chair
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Huseyin Hayatsever | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

President Tayyip Erdogan submitted the ratification bill for Sweden's NATO membership bid to parliament last month, a move welcomed by Stockholm as it would clear the way for it to join the Western defence alliance. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said he wants a "speedy vote" by Turkey's parliament and that the process was "going well". "Sweden's NATO membership is just one of the international agreements on our agenda waiting for ratification," Oktay told a meeting of lawmakers. The Sweden NATO membership bill must be approved by the committee before a vote by the full parliament, at which point Erdogan would sign it into law. Finland's membership was sealed in April, but Sweden's bid had been held up by Turkey and Hungary.

Persons: Tayyip Erdogan, Ataturk, Cagla, Jens Stoltenberg, Fuat Oktay, Oktay, Erdogan, Sweden's, Huseyin Hayatsever, Jonathan Spicer, Mark Heinrich Our Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, NATO, Sweden NATO, Kurdistan Workers ' Party, Thomson Locations: Anitkabir, Ankara, Turkey, Rights ANKARA, Turkish, Stockholm, Sweden, Finland, Ukraine, Hungary, Kurdistan

☆ Nordic Countries to Cooperate More on Returning Migrants to Countries of Origin
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-31 | by ( Oct. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Johannes BirkebaekCOPENHAGEN (Reuters) - The Nordic governments intend to step up their cooperation to return immigrants without legal residence in the region to their countries of origin, ministers from the five countries said in a joint press conference in Copenhagen on Tuesday. However, the Danish model has become more popular as anti-immigration voices have gained traction across the Nordic region. The ministers of Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway and Iceland have agreed to strengthen cooperation between diplomatic personnel in charge of returning migrants from the respective Nordic countries to their country of origin. The five countries also have agreed to arrange joint flights to take illegal residents to a third country through the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, Frontex. Lastly, the ministers agreed to "assist stranded irregular migrants in North Africa," who they say will be offered assisted voluntary return to their home countries and assistance in re-establishing themselves in the third country.

Persons: Johannes Birkebaek COPENHAGEN, Ulf Kristersson, Maria Malmer Stenergard, Mari Rantanen, Johannes Birkebaek, Louise Rasmussen, David Gregorio Organizations: Nordic, United Nations, of, European Border, Coast Guard Agency, Frontex, Agency, International Organisation for Migration Locations: Copenhagen, Denmark, Danish, Nordic, Swedish, Finland, Finnish, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, North Africa, Europe, Africa

☆ Ukraine war orders starting to boost revenues for big US defense contractors
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 is starting to boost defense contractors' revenues, as customers such as the U.S. government restock supplies shipped to Ukraine and countries around Europe arm themselves with an eye on Moscow's aggressions. New contracts to supply Ukraine directly - or backfill U.S. weapons sent to Ukraine - were signed late last year, and now revenue is flowing to the big defense contractors. "We've gone from 14,000 (artillery) rounds per month to 20,000 very quickly. The General Dynamics' Combat Systems unit, which makes armored vehicles, tanks and the artillery Ukraine uses, saw its revenue rise almost 25% versus the same period a year ago. Third-quarter sales for Northrop Grumman's (NOC.N) Defense Systems segment rose 6% on high demand for ammunition and rocket motors used in guided multiple-launch rocket systems (GMLRS), which play a crucial role in supporting Ukraine's defense efforts against Russian forces.

Persons: Lockheed Martin, We've, Jason Aiken, Northrop Grumman's, Sweden's, Joe Biden, Biden, Dynamics's Aiken, Mike Stone, Rod Nickel Organizations: Lockheed, General Dynamics, Patriot, Palestinian, Hamas, Wall, Dynamics ', Systems, Wall Street, Russian, Sweden's Saab, Rheinmetall, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Europe, aggressions ., U.S, Israel, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Washington

☆ Fitch affirms Sweden's 'AAA' ratings
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Oct 27 (Reuters) - Fitch affirmed Sweden's long-term local and foreign currency debt rating of "AAA" on Friday, citing the country's sound public finances and policy framework. The ratings agency also affirmed Sweden's outlook at "stable" and kept its short-term foreign currency rating at "F1+". The agency upgraded Sweden's foreign currency rating to "AAA" in 2004 and it has remain unchanged since. Earlier this month, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan submitted a bill approving Sweden's NATO membership bid to parliament for ratification. Sweden had applied for a NATO membership alongside Finland last year, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Persons: Fitch, Sweden's, Tayyip Erdogan, Tanya Jain, Devika Organizations: AAA, NATO, Finland, Thomson Locations: Sweden, Ukraine, Finland, Turkey, Hungary, Bengaluru

☆ Swedbank beats Q3 profit estimates, says economy "remains resilient"
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Tom Little/File photo Acquire Licensing RightsSTOCKHOLM, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Swedish banking group Swedbank (SWEDa.ST) reported a bigger-than-expected third-quarter net profit on Thursday, and said the economy remained resilient despite turbulence and higher interest rates. Sweden's biggest mortgage lender posted a net profit of 9.13 billion crowns ($817 million), well above a forecast of 8.57 billion crowns in a LSEG poll of analysts. It had posted a profit of 5.59 billion crowns in the year-ago period. Swedbank, a rival to lenders such as Handelsbanken (SHBa.ST), Nordea (NDAFI.HE) and SEB (SEBa.ST), said interest income, which includes revenues from mortgages, rose to 12.9 billion crowns from 8.36 billion crowns a year ago, slightly beating expectations. Swedbank booked loan loss provisions of 347 million crowns, down from 602 million crowns in the year-ago quarter, and below analysts' expectations of losses of 583 million crowns.

Persons: Tom Little, Jens Henriksson, SEB, Swedbank, Johan Ahlander, Anna Ringstrom Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Stockholm, Sweden, Rights STOCKHOLM, Swedish, Swedbank

☆ Big central banks hit pause, with rate cuts far off
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

On Oct. 23, Fed Chair Jay Powell said a strong economy and tight jobs market could warrant more rate rises. Interest rate futures show traders believe the BoE will not cut rates, now at their highest since 2008, until at least June 2024. "The Governing Council’s past interest rate increases continue to be transmitted forcefully into financing conditions," the ECB said, adding it would follow a "data-dependent" approach and future decisions would be based on incoming data. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere told parliament last week interest rates may have peaked. Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics8) AUSTRALIAThe Reserve Bank of Australia held rates steady at 4.1% for a fourth meeting in October.

Persons: Jonathan Ernst, Jay Powell, BoE, Jonas Gahr Stoere, Michele Bullock, Naomi Rovnick, Harry Robertson, Alun John, Yoruk Bahceli, Samuel Indyk, Chiara Elisei, Kripa Jayaram, Pasit, Riddhima, Sumanta Sen, Vineet, Amanda Cooper, Giles Elgood Organizations: . Federal, REUTERS, European Central Bank, Federal Reserve, Bank of England, UNITED, Reuters, Reserve Bank of New Zealand, BRITAIN, Bank of Canada, BoC, ECB, Norges Bank, Reuters Graphics Reuters, Reserve Bank of Australia, Bank of Japan, Thomson Locations: Washington, Japan, hawkish, dovish, NORWAY, SWEDEN Sweden, SWITZERLAND, Swiss, Gaza, JAPAN

[1/4] A view of the turbines at an offshore wind farm near Nysted, Denmark, September 4, 2023. Time is short: The EU has a legally binding goal to nearly double renewable sources as a share of total energy by 2030, to 42.5%, requiring a rapid expansion of offshore wind. But of the governments surveyed, only Britain and Poland said they had invested or budgeted for steps to improve the security of offshore infrastructure. It requires a lot of effort from the government side," said Mattia Cecchinato, senior adviser for offshore wind at WindEurope. It said it would establish a permanent coast guard base close to where offshore wind farms are planned.

Persons: Tom Little, Thomas Almegaard, Vladimir Putin, Mads Nipper, Orsted, Ewa Skoog Haslum, James Appathurai, Germany's RWE, Anitta, Mattia Cecchinato, Rasmus, Krzysztof Jaworski, Orsted's Errboe, Benjamin Mallet, Riham, Elizabeth Piper, Toby Sterling, Andrius Sytas, Marek Strzelecki, Sara Ledwith Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Baltic Seas, EU, NATO, NewNew, Sweden's, Soaring, Emerging, Research, Solutions, Internal, Fund, Military, Naval Operations Centre, Polish Navy, Thomson Locations: Nysted, Denmark, Europe, Baltic, Nord, Finland, Sweden, Estonia, Russian, Russia, NewNew Shipping, Netherlands, Britain, Poland, Germany, North, Swedish, Copenhagen, Moscow, Sofia, European, Anitta Hipper, Belgium, Norway, France, Lithuania, Latvia, Baltic . Poland, Paris, Berlin, London, Amsterdam, Vilnius, Warsaw

☆ Bank SEB's Q3 operating profit jumps 42%, beats expectations
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The Nordic bank SEB group logo is seen outside a branch in central Stockholm, Sweden, July 18, 2023. REUTERS/Tom Little Acquire Licensing RightsSTOCKHOLM, Oct 25 (Reuters) - Swedish bank SEB (SEBa.ST) reported a 42% rise in third-quarter operating profit on Wednesday, topping market expectations, but said the positive effect from higher interest rates had come down compared to previous quarters. Sweden's biggest corporate bank said operating profit was 13.0 billion crowns ($1.17 billion) against a year-ago 9.12 billion, beating a mean forecast of 11.0 billion in an LSEG poll of analysts. Banks have seen their income boosted by higher interest rates as central banks scrambled to bring down stubbornly high inflation. The bank, whose main rivals include Handelsbanken, Swedbank and Nordea, said its net interest income rose to 12.3 billion crowns from 7.7 billion crowns, above the 12.0 billion crowns expected by analysts.

Persons: Tom Little, SEBa.ST, Banks, SEB, Johan Ahlander, Anna Ringstrom, Eileen Soreng Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Thomson Locations: Stockholm, Sweden, Rights STOCKHOLM, Swedish

☆ Injuries add to Newcastle woes in Dortmund loss
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Defeat means Newcastle face a fight to progress from Group F although they are still well-placed with four points from three games, the same as Dortmund. But of even more concern to Howe were injuries to forwards Alexander Isak and Jacob Murphy. "Isak going off was a blow and Jacob came off with what looks like a serious injury," Howe said. Jacob looks serious, potentially a dislocation of his shoulder." Newcastle face Wolverhampton Wanderers away in the Premier League on Saturday.

Persons: Park, Newcastle United's Alexander Isak, Lee Smith, Newcastle United's, Eddie Howe's, Howe, Alexander Isak, Jacob Murphy, Sweden's Isak, Callum Wilson, Murphy, Isak, Jacob, We've, That's, Elliot Anderson, He's, Martyn Herman, Hugh Lawson Organizations: Soccer Football, Newcastle United, Borussia Dortmund, James, Newcastle, Champions League, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Premier League, Thomson Locations: Newcastle, Britain, NEWCASTLE, England, Dortmund

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