In the first quarter, there was some speculation that currency pegs in either the Middle East or Hong Kong were going to give way. We argued that the pegs would in fact hold, and hold they have. In fact, pressure on the Saudi and Hong Kong pegs has dissipated.
In a race that grows tighter, Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt of the Social Democratic party touts her success in getting the economy back on track. Opposition leader Lars Lokke Rasmussen from the Venstre party, a center-right party, claims the same success because of his governance from 2009 to 2011.
The Danish government announced plans to remove legal requirements that certain vendors must accept cash. The plan would allow gas stations, clothing stores, and restaurants to stop accepting cash in favor of purely electronic transactions facilitated by payment cards or other online payment tools.
There is much speculation that Denmark will soon capitulate to the same forces that saw the Swiss National Bank abandon the franc cap last month. However, Denmark continues to resist. It has not reached the end of its rope.
Denmark experienced economic difficulty in 2014 and ended the year with growth falling to .75% from an estimated 1.4% in December. Predictions for 2015 also took a turn, moving to 1.5% from an earlier estimate of 2.0%.
Falling demand is the primary reason for reduced growth. Danish households and companies were less likely to consume and invest. Consumption slumped as Danes began paying off debts accumulated in the wake of the burst housing bubble. However, household finances are now beginning to balance out.
The Danish economy has experienced various blows over the recent years, although not entirely from the same place. Over the last three years, the purchases that Danish locals have been making abroad using electronic transactions has seen an increase of approximately 40%, despite having only experienced a 14% national increase.
Denmark has repealed the world’s first “fat tax”, a tax on foods which are high in saturated fat, after Copenhagen found that it had inflated food prices and put Danish jobs at risk.
Danish lawmakers have axed a controversial “fat tax” a year after its implementation, saying the measure was hurting local businesses and failed encourage healthier eating habits.
Industry Type: Banks: Commercial and Savings
CEO: Peter Straarup
Number of Employees: 15,382
Address: 2-12 Holmens Kanal, Copenhagen, Denmark 1092
More on Danske Bank ….
Denmark in 2006 possessed an estimated population of 5 427 459. GDP growth rate stood at 3.20 % for both 2006 and 2007. This figure scaled down to 1.70 % for 2008. In 2006, Denmark’s industrial sector accounted for 25% of its national GDP. Comparable figure for agriculture was way below at 2%. Unemployment rate in Denmark fell from 5.70 % in 2006 to 3.80 % in 2007. Financial services, communications, transportation and trade are nerve centers of modern Denmark.
