Interim report for the first six months of 2013

Continued high demand

Demand for lending from the Swedish Export Credit Corporation, SEK, was high in the first six months of 2013. The second quarter saw a return to previous year’ levels from the high levels in the first three months of the year. SEK strengthens Swedish exports by the availability of funding, and increasingly dealing with sustainability issues.

SEK’s new lending for the first six months of the year amounted to Skr 38.1 billion, an increase of Skr 9.6 billion on the year-earlier period. Demand was particularly high for end-customer finance, in which SEK provides lending to the customers of Swedish exporters. Volumes of new end-customer finance amounted to Skr 27.4 billion, compared with Skr 20.3 billion in the same period in 2012. Exporter demand for direct finance was also high in the first six months of the year.

“This shows that financing from SEK remains important for the Swedish export sector. A number of indicators, including SEK’s own Export Credit Trends Survey which was published in June, are now pointing to Swedish exports beginning to gain momentum,” said SEK President Peter Yngwe.

“We have also noted that SEK is increasingly being asked to act as co-arranger in major export credit transactions to strengthen the credibility of transactions in terms of access to financing and ensuring high quality throughout the process, particularly those aspects regarding the handling of sustainability issues. This is a clear sign that a growing number of companies are placing considerable importance on transactions meeting international standards on business ethics, the environment and human rights,” said Peter Yngwe.

Net interest income for the first six months amounted to Skr 813.1 million, a decrease of 19.5 percent on the previous year. This was principally due to a substantial fall in the margin on liquidity placements, which ensure future lending capacity, owing to the new regulations for financial institutions.

• Operating profit decreased to Skr 105.0 million (493.7).
• The return on equity after tax was 1.1 percent, compared with 5.1 percent in the year-earlier period.
• Operating profit, excluding changes in fair value, was Skr 595.7 million, compared with Skr 953.1 million for the same period in 2012.
• The common equity Tier-1 capital adequacy ratio was 19.9 percent at the end of the period (19.8 percent at the end of 2012).

Contacts:
Peter Yngwe, President, +46 703 97 88 47
Susanna Rystedt, Director of Administration, +46 706 44 11 05

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