and another with foreign. The Board of Trade is tinder the Finance
Department. A number of matters dealing with foreign trade are taken
by the Foreign Office, whose trade department is under the direction of
a Bureau Chief.
For the consideration of more important trade questions the Foreign
Minister and the Finance Minister are entitled to call to their assistance
the so-called Commercial Council, whose members, to the number of
seven, are nominated by the Government from amongst practical leaders
of trade, industry, and shipping.
As a medium for the leaders of industry themselves, the Chambers of
Commerce, founded by voluntary co-operation, have by degrees assumed
increasingly great importance. _
Mo special trade courts exist in Sweden, but, on the other hand, in the
hearing of certain cases in the borough courts in our three largest towns
trade experts are called as members, and these are nominated by the
town councils.
The Consular Service, which before 1906 was in certain respects under the
control of the Board of Trade, is now,- like the diplomatic corps, entirely
subordinated to the Foreign Minister, and consular questions are dealt with
by the Foreign Office; what has to do with its personnel, organization, etc. 'by
the trade department of the Foreign Office. The different grades among consuls
are Consul-Generals, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls, besides which, to assist in
the execution of the consular business, are appointed clerks and attaches. The
consuls of the different grades are either officials sent out from home (salaried
consuls, consules missi), or else merchants or other suitable persons living on
the spot (unpaid consuls, consules electi). The latter have the right to reimburse
themselves for office expenses in connection with their duties without
rendering accounts. Salaried consuls must' be Swedish subjects, which is not
a condition for the unpaid ones. Consul-Generals, consuls, and salaried vice-
consuls are appointed and dismissed by the King, but unpaid vice-consuls and
other officials by the Foreign Minister. — The duties of consuls are with
faithfulness and zeal to watch over Sweden’s interests, and to the best of their
ability to promote the country’s welfare, especially in the matter of trade, shipping,
and industry. They are also, as far as lies in their power, to protect
Swedish subjects, their property and rights, and to assist them with advice and help.
The Stock Exchange, as an institution, is but little developed in Sweden.
Stockholm and Gothenburg possess fine Stock Exchange buildings, and several
other towns posses' similar premises. Brokerss(so-called “official brokers”) are
accepted by the commercial and shipping boards of the respective towns,
after which their nomination is issued by the magistracy. At the present time
the members of the Stockholm Stock Exchange consists of 5 brokers, 16 banks,
and 8 banking firms (“free" brokers). The stock exchange business done in 1912
amounted to 317 million kronor and in 1913 to 180 millions.
The institution of a Clearing House was not introduced into Sweden until
1899, since which time the Bank of Sweden has maintained premises and a
personnel for a clearing house in Stockholm.1 (The cashing of country notes,
1 By “Clearing House” is to be understood au iustitutiou by means of wlich the different
banks can daily arrange a mutual exchange of bills and cheques, so that payment or transfers
need only be arranged for balances due between the different banks. The total of the
business dealt with by the London Clearing House amounts to over a hundred milliards of
kronor a year.
which to a certain degree gave rise to the Clearing House, was undertaken from
1857—1865 by the Stockholms Enskilda Bank and after the latter year chiefly
by the Scandinavian Credit Company -—- “Skandinaviska Kreditaktiebolaget”.)
In the clearing operations participate at present, besides the Bank o f Sweden,
13 private banks with offices in Stockholm, and these represent other banks
on a system securing that all the business banks in the country are represented
in the clearing operations. The operations in 1913 involved 6 milliards of
kronor of which 80 per cent balanced out and 20 per cent was settled by
transfers at the Bank of Sweden. (A certain amount of clearing takes place,
besides, at all the branches of the Bank of Sweden, between the banks on the
spot.)
The Swedish Chamber of Commerce Organization now covers nearly the
whole country. The first Chamber of Commerce was founded in Stockholm in
1902, and subsequently Chambers of Commerce have been established at Bords,
Luleâ, Oothenburg, Malmo, Jônkôping, Örebro, Gavle, Visby, Karlstad, Norr-
kbping, and Sundsvall, most of them embracing several Ians, or extensive
districts beyond the urban areas. The Chambers of Commerce occupy themselves
with trade, industry, and shipping. Their duties are chiefly to submit
pronouncements and propositions to the authorities as regards industrial questions,
but, by the side of this, they are active in the supply of commercial intelligence,
they .issue publications and act as arbitration-courts for the settlement of commercial
disputes. Representatives of the Chambers of Commerce assemble
yearly at a so-called Chamber of Commerce Assembly, for the purpose of considering
matters of common interest. - r There are, too, Swedish Chambers of
Commerce in several places abroad, namely, in London, New York, and Sydney,
whose object it is to promote Swedish commercial1 relations with the countries
in which they are situated.
The General Swedish Export Association was formed in the year 1887, with
the object- of securing new or increased facilities for the disposal of Swedish
products abroad. It is constituted more especially after the Austrian pattern.
The Association works by obtaining information as to prices, credit, freightage,
conditions, etc.; by arranging depots for and small exhibitions of Swedish products
in important places; by distributing catalogues of suitable Swedish export-1
articles abroad; etc. Further, the Association publishes a paper “Swedish
Export”.
The Swedish Statistical Report of Trade, which dates from a considerable
time back, is published by the Chamber of Commerce, partly in the form of an
annual publication containing a complete report, and partly in the form of
monthly reports, which only contain accounts of the imports and exports of the
more important wares. In earlier times, these reports were none too complete,
but with 1871 a considerable improvement began, and many reforms have been
effected during the period 1891—1900, the publication of the reports having
been much expedited. Further reforms are to be anticipated, especially as regards
the valuation of the goods, which has hitherto left much to be desired in some
respects. In this respect it has been suggested that the returns as to value
shall be given by the importers and exporters themselves for every lot of goods
(the so-called declared value). According to the Ordinance Nov. 28, 1913 such
declarations shall, with certain exceptions, be made since Jan. 1, 1914. The
monthly statistics, whieh were formerly published by the Royal Board of Customs,
have, since 1913, been incorporated with a publication issued by the Board of
trade, under the name of “Commercial Returns” (“Kommersiella Meddelanden”),
m which are also published the reports o f Swedish consuls and other official
communications having to do with foreign trade and shipping.
63—-133179. Sweden. II.