Did you know that
Exchange rate regime
It is the government that decides what exchange rate regime Sweden shall have, while the Riksbank decides on how the regime is applied.
Cash in circulation
There is around SEK 100 billion in the form of banknotes and coins in circulation in Sweden.
The foreign exchange reserve
The gold and foreign exchange reserve amounted to around SEK 161 billion on 31 December 2003, of which some SEK 18 billion was gold.
Market operations
One of the Riksbank’s main tasks is to conduct monetary policy. The objective of monetary policy in Sweden is to achieve price stability. More specifically inflation is to be maintained at 2 per cent plus/minus 1 percentage point.
The Riksbank’s primary instrument of monetary policy is the repo rate. This is changed with the aim of influencing other interest rates in the economy and thereby economic activity and inflation.
Monetary policy is implemented in practice through open market operations in the money and FX markets. The Riksbank deals primarily with those counterparties that have signed an agreement with the Bank. In order to become a counterparty certain requirements must be met.
The payment system
The banks’ bank
The RIX system, the Riksbank’s system for the settlement of payments, can said to be the hub of the Swedish payment system in that all payments between banks and other agents eventually pass through RIX. The Riksbank thus functions as the banks’ bank in the settlement of payments in Swedish kronor.
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Foreign exchange reserve
Why do we have a foreign exchange reserve?
The Riksbank has a foreign exchange reserve to meet temporary fluctuations in payments to the rest of the world. The Riksbank makes regular decisions about the reserve’s composition and how it is invested. This is done to ensure a satisfactory yield or a required level of liquidity. The decisions can also form a part of exchange rate policy, in order to influence the value of the krona.
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