Part 5/9:
However, a turning point arrived in May 2023 when the Riksbank began to lower interest rates in response to declining inflation rates. By January of the following year, inflation had dropped to 0.9%, enabling the Riksbank to cut rates to their lowest levels in over two years. This shift alleviated pressure on mortgage holders, and by the end of 2023, household consumption rose by 0.7%, while real disposable incomes increased by 3.5% year-on-year. Retail sales surged to their highest levels in five years, translating into a remarkable growth of 2.4% in GDP for the last quarter of 2024—indicative of a recovery taking place.