Status: Ratified 9 October 2018
Sweden has a unicameral system, requiring the Riksdag to ratify CETA. The Riksdag ratified CETA in March 2018, with formal notification of ratification in October 2018. The ratification process in Sweden was steered by a minority government, led by Stefan Löfven’s Social Democrats, but with the support of centre-right Alliance and Moderate Party.
Public debate
Contestation on CETA’s ratification was limited in Sweden. Proponents of CETA included Business Sweden, a trade and investment council that highlighted the new commerce opportunities CETA would provide for small and medium-size enterprises. Opponents of CETA’s ratification in Sweden focused on the investor-state dispute settlement provisions, regulatory standards and the effect of procurement competition on public services. CSOs opposed to CETA included Skiftet, Friends of the Earth and FIAN Sweden.
Trade data
Sweden had a trade surplus in goods trade with Canada of €542 million in 2021 (Eurostat). Imports from Canada were €472 million, 0.9% of Sweden’s imports from outside the EU. Exports to Canada were €1.01 million, 1.4% of Sweden’s extra-EU exports (Eurostat). Canada-Sweden bilateral goods trade (imports + exports) grew by €72 million, or 3.9%, between 2016 and 2019 (Statistics Canada).
Sources
Business-Sweden, Canada. Link.
Corporate Europe Observatory. (November 2016). European and Canadian civil society groups call for rejection of CETA. Link
Eschbach, A. The Ratification Process in EU Member States – A presentation with particular consideration of the TTIP and CETA free trade agreements. Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law. Link
Kommerskollegium. (February 2016). “Analysis of the free trade agreement between the EU, its member states and Canada (CETA) – an assignment by the Swedish government.” The Swedish Government. Link.
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