EVEN IF SWEDEN gets a respectable 7.2 out of 10 possible as a country of purchase, a little more than 100 Swedish Purchasing Managers are concerned about the future.

– Swedish suppliers’ competitiveness is relatively good, especially when it comes to quality. Our Achilles heel is our costs, says Hubert Fromlet, chief economist at Swedbank in connection with the presentation of Swedbank’s and Silf’s (Swedish Purchasing Organisation) report.

56 percent of the interviewed purchasing managers said that costs and prices are factors that Swedish suppliers need to improve. At the same time, growth markets continue to gain market shares with Swedish purchasers. Just like in 2006, when the last report was published, China remains in the lead as an important purchasing country in coming years. A country previously in the dark which is taking a step forward to second place, is India.

– India has great potential, particularly in the service sector and many companies want to explore this market further, says Hubert Fromlet.

 

DUE TO INCREASING costs and enormous pay increases, the Baltic countries, previously very popular among Swedish buyers, have been surpassed by neighbouring countries like Bulgaria, Romania and Poland.

– With the environmental debate and the proximity principle, European low-price countries will continue to be interesting to Swedish companies when it comes to heavy goods, regardless the low prices offered by Asian countries, says Svante Axelsson, Silf representative at IFPSM (the International Federation of Purchasing and Supply Management).

 

THE ADVICE FROM Swedbank and Silf to Swedish suppliers to keep up in the global competition is clear:

– Swedish suppliers have to review their production costs, decrease lead times, value product quality and invest in research and development, explains Hubert Fromlet.

  

Emelie Ring, Editor