By Klas Fregert and Roger Gustafsson
This section presents data on central government borrowing at the Swedish Riksbank from 1668 until 2003, on interest payments and seigniorage since 1722 and on central bank transfers to the government since 1826. All series are in nominal amounts and transformed to thousands of SEK (krona), the currency unit used in Sweden since 1873.
The figure below depicts the evolution of the Swedish central government debt as a share of GDP over the last three hundred years. While several of the peaks are related to wars, the increase during the last decades is not and instead witnesses the effect of the growth of government.
Unit of account: thousands of SEK (krona), the currency unit used in Sweden since 1873.
Excelfile: Sheets: Final, Sources, Background: loans to the Riksbank, Background: interest payments to the Riksbank. The background files show the calculations with the headings used in the original sources.
List of variables and their definitions:
| Variable |
Period |
| Central government loans at the Riksbank |
1670-2003 |
| Central government interest payments to the Riksbank |
1722-2003 |
| Fiscal seigniorage |
1722-2003 |
| Central bank transfers to the central government |
1826-2003 |
Note: The Riksbank loans and interest payments are also presented as shares of total government debt and interest payments.
General reference: Fregert, K. och R. Gustafsson, (2008), "Fiscal Statistics for Sweden 1719-2003", Research in Economic History, volume 25, 137-191