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Sweden Country Guide
Explore Sweden in Europe
The landscape offers mostly flat or gently rolling lowlands with mountains in west. The average density of population is approximately 20 per km². The notable climate conditions in Sweden can be described as temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers with subarctic in north. Potential threats by nature are ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic.
To reach someone in Sweden dial +46 prior to a number. There are 5,146,000 installed telephones. And there are 11,426,000 registered mobile phones. The cellular networks commonly support frequencies of 900/1800/3G MHz. Websites registered in this country end with the top level domain ".se". If you want to bring electric equipment on your trip (e.g. laptop power supply), note the local power outlet of 230V - 50Hz.
About the flag and history of Sweden
Blue with a golden yellow cross extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag); the colors reflect those of the Swedish coat of arms - three gold crowns on a blue field.
A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for almost two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both world wars. Sweden's long-successful economic formula of a capitalist system interlarded with substantial welfare elements was challenged in the 1990s by high unemployment and in 2000-02 and 2009 by the global economic downturns, but fiscal discipline over the past several years has allowed the country to weather economic vagaries. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum.
Geography Quick-Facts
| Summary | Continent: Europe Neighbours: Norway, Finland Capital: Stockholm |
| Size | 449,964 square kilometers (km² or sqkm) or 173,732 square miles (mi² or sqmi) slightly larger than California |
| Population | 9,045,000 |
| Currency | Name Krona, Currency Code:SEK |
| Country Top Level Domain (cTLD) | .se |
| Telephone Country Prefix | +46 |
| Mobile Phone Connections | 11,426,000 |
| Landline Phone Connections | 5,146,000 |
Country Position in World Rankings
Information about single country attributes and how these compare against the rest of the world. The information below is compiled with data from 2013. As such, it may differ a bit to the Information above in the text (which is from 2010).
Geography
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Area | 450,295 (sq km) | 56 |
People and Society
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 9,119,423 | 92 |
| Population growth rate | 0.18 (%) | 178 |
| Birth rate | 10.33 (births/1,000 population) | 186 |
| Death rate | 10.22 (deaths/1,000 population) | 47 |
| Net migration rate | 1.64 (migrant(s)/1,000 population) | 48 |
| Maternal mortality rate | 4.00 (deaths/100,000 live births) | 178 |
| Infant mortality rate | 2.73 (deaths/1,000 live births) | 220 |
| Life expectancy at birth | 81.28 (years) | 17 |
| Total fertility rate | 1.67 (children born/woman) | 173 |
| Health expenditures | 9.60 (% of GDP) | 31 |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate | 0.10 (%) | 160 |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS | 8,100 | 107 |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths | 100 | 115 |
| Obesity - adult prevalence rate | 18.60 (%) | 104 |
| Education expenditures | 7.30 (% of GDP) | 20 |
| Unemployment, youth ages 15-24 | 22.90 (%) | 45 |
Economy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| GDP (purchasing power parity) | 399,400,000,000 | 35 |
| GDP - real growth rate | 1.20 (%) | 157 |
| GDP - per capita (PPP) | 41,900 | 26 |
| Labor force | 5,032,000 | 76 |
| Unemployment rate | 7.50 (%) | 84 |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 23.00 | 136 |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 18.20 (% of GDP) | 117 |
| Taxes and other revenues | 54.70 (% of GDP) | 13 |
| Budget surplus (+) or deficit (-) | -0.30 (% of GDP) | 49 |
| Public debt | 38.60 (% of GDP) | 95 |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.40 (%) | 22 |
| Central bank discount rate | 0.50 (%) | 137 |
| Commercial bank prime lending rate | 4.28 (%) | 167 |
| Stock of narrow money | 243,000,000,000 | 17 |
| Stock of broad money | 440,200,000,000 | 24 |
| Stock of domestic credit | 803,300,000,000 | 19 |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | 581,200,000,000 | 20 |
| Industrial production growth rate | 6.80 (%) | 43 |
| Current account balance | 37,560,000,000 | 13 |
| Exports | 177,600,000,000 | 29 |
| Imports | 166,400,000,000 | 30 |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 50,350,000,000 | 37 |
| Debt - external | 1,034,000,000,000 | 18 |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | 356,500,000,000 | 17 |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | 385,400,000,000 | 16 |
Energy
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Electricity - production | 147,800,000,000 (kWh) | 27 |
| Electricity - consumption | 127,100,000,000 (kWh) | 27 |
| Electricity - exports | 12,850,000,000 (kWh) | 14 |
| Electricity - imports | 14,930,000,000 (kWh) | 13 |
| Electricity - installed generating capacity | 35,290,000 (kW) | 25 |
| Electricity - from fossil fuels | 12.50 (% of total installed capacity) | 194 |
| Electricity - from nuclear fuels | 25.00 (% of total installed capacity) | 6 |
| Electricity - from hydroelectric plants | 46.90 (% of total installed capacity) | 45 |
| Electricity - from other renewable sources | 15.20 (% of total installed capacity) | 11 |
| Crude oil - imports | 380,100 (bbl/day) | 24 |
| Refined petroleum products - production | 413,300 (bbl/day) | 37 |
| Refined petroleum products - consumption | 316,000 (bbl/day) | 42 |
| Refined petroleum products - exports | 243,200 (bbl/day) | 27 |
| Refined petroleum products - imports | 166,000 (bbl/day) | 33 |
| Natural gas - consumption | 1,296,000,000 (cu m) | 86 |
| Natural gas - imports | 1,296,000,000 (cu m) | 54 |
| Carbon dioxide emissions from consumption of energy | 62,740,000 (Mt) | 54 |
Communications
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Telephones - main lines in use | 4,600,000 | 35 |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 11,194,000 | 69 |
| Internet hosts | 5,978,000 | 19 |
| Internet users | 8,398,000 | 33 |
Transportation
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Airports | 230 | 26 |
| Railways | 11,633 (km) | 20 |
| Roadways | 572,900 (km) | 12 |
| Waterways | 2,052 (km) | 41 |
| Merchant marine | 135 | 42 |
Military
| Value name | Value | World Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Military expenditures | 1.50 (% of GDP) | 100 |
Data based on CIA facts book 2010 & 2013, wikipedia, national statistical offices and their census releases
List of current world heritage sites
| Name | Since |
|---|---|
| Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland The southern part of the island of Öland in the Baltic Sea is dominated by a vast limestone plateau. Human beings have lived here for some five thousand years and adapted their way of life to the physical constraints of the island. As a consequence, ... | 2000 |
| Birka and Hovgården The Birka archaeological site is located on Björkö Island in Lake Mälar and was occupied in the 9th and 10th centuries. Hovgården is situated on the neighbouring island of Adelsö. Together, they make up an archaeological complex which illustrates the ... | 1993 |
| Church Town of Gammelstad, Luleå Gammelstad, at the head of the Gulf of Bothnia, is the best-preserved example of a 'church village', a unique kind of village formerly found throughout northern Scandinavia. The 424 wooden houses, huddled round the early 15th-century stone church, we ... | 1996 |
| Decorated Farmhouses of Hälsingland Seven timber houses are listed in this site located in the east of Sweden, representing the zenith of a regional timber building tradition that dates back to the Middle Ages. They reflect the prosperity of independent farmers who in the 19th century ... | 2012 |
| Engelsberg Ironworks Sweden's production of superior grades of iron made it a leader in this field in the 17th and 18th centuries. This site is the best-preserved and most complete example of this type of Swedish ironworks. ... | 1993 |
| Grimeton Radio Station, Varberg The Varberg Radio Station at Grimeton in southern Sweden (built 1922–24) is an exceptionally well-preserved monument to early wireless transatlantic communication. It consists of the transmitter equipment, including the aerial system of six 127-m hig ... | 2004 |
| Hanseatic Town of Visby A former Viking site on the island of Gotland, Visby was the main centre of the Hanseatic League in the Baltic from the 12th to the 14th century. Its 13th-century ramparts and more than 200 warehouses and wealthy merchants' dwellings from the same pe ... | 1995 |
| Laponian Area The Arctic Circle region of northern Sweden is the home of the Saami, or Lapp people. It is the largest area in the world (and one of the last) with an ancestral way of life based on the seasonal movement of livestock. Every summer, the Saami lead th ... | 1996 |
| Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun The enormous mining excavation known as the Great Pit at Falun is the most striking feature of a landscape that illustrates the activity of copper production in this region since at least the 13th century. The 17th-century planned town of Falun with ... | 2001 |
| Naval Port of Karlskrona Karlskrona is an outstanding example of a late-17th-century European planned naval city. The original plan and many of the buildings have survived intact, along with installations that illustrate its subsequent development up to the present day. ... | 1998 |
| Rock Carvings in Tanum The rock carvings in Tanum, in the north of Bohuslän, are a unique artistic achievement not only for their rich and varied motifs (depictions of humans and animals, weapons, boats and other subjects) but also for their cultural and chronological unit ... | 1994 |
| Royal Domain of Drottningholm The Royal Domain of Drottningholm stands on an island in Lake Mälar in a suburb of Stockholm. With its castle, perfectly preserved theatre (built in 1766), Chinese pavilion and gardens, it is the finest example of an 18th-century north European royal ... | 1991 |
| Skogskyrkogården This Stockholm cemetery was created between 1917 and 1920 by two young architects, Asplund and Lewerentz, on the site of former gravel pits overgrown with pine trees. The design blends vegetation and architectural elements, taking advantage of irregu ... | 1994 |