Industrial trends
- Business cycle in the Öresund region 2000-2007
Source: Öresund Barometer (Business tendency survey)<br /> Footnote: Capital Region of Denmark refers to Copenhagen County, Frederiksberg County, the previous Copenhagen County, Frederiksberg County and Roskilde County.
After a strong economic development for a number of years, the economy in the Öresund region is beginning to slow down. Following several weak years at the start of the 2000s, the business cycle has developed strongly and the economy has been booming on both the Danish and Swedish sides of the Öresund region. In 2005 and 2006, business in Skåne had a growth spurt and surpassed the Copenhagen area on the economic curve by a slight margin.
At the same time Denmark experienced its strongest growth in several years. The healthy economy combined with a weak population growth has resulted in a sharp increase for the demand for labour. Denmark has the lowest unemployment in the EU and according to the Öresund Barometer (November 2006), as many as one in four employers in the Capital Region of Denmark considered seeking Swedish employees in 2007. However, in 2006 the Danish Finance Minister pointed out that economic growth was starting to slow down, partly due to a decreased demand and partly because the shortage of labour supply puts limits on economic growth. The Öresund Barometer measurement of the economy from November 2007 confirmed the assessment of the Danish Finance Minister. The downturn in the Capital Region of Denmark is mainly seen in the manufacturing and construction industries together with car sales.
Despite the slowdown, the shortage of labour supply is still a big problem for many companies in Öresund DK and Capital Region of Denmark in particular. The measurement from November 2007 also shows that despite the economic slump, companies’ plans to recruit labour in Skåne have not decreased. Skåne, which has always lagged behind the Capital Region of Denmark in the business cycle, has not yet experienced the same downturn as the Capital Region of Denmark, but the slowdown will probably become more noticeable during 2008.
