Swedish Krona Live Rates: SEK in Real Time

The Swedish krona qualifies as number nine among the world’s most traded currencies in 2021.

Despite the country’s modest size, SEK is generally a popular currency in the forex market and an interesting asset to trade with. ForexTrading.uk lists everything you need to know about the Swedish krona – from a historical look back, to live prices in real time, which pairs it is mainly traded in, where you can trade it and what the outlook for SEK looks like.

SEK in real time
USD/SEK  
EUR/SEK  
GBP/SEK  
NOK/SEK  

Forex trading with SEK – The most traded currency pairs

Despite the fact that Sweden has a relatively small population and when it comes to trading in the international arena, the krona is still a popular currency to trade with. Next to the 8 most traded currencies – USD, EUR, JPY, GBP, CHF, AUD, CAD and NZD – SEK is actually just behind. It is traded to the greatest extent in currency pairs such as EUR / SEK, USD / SEK, GBP / SEK, CHF / SEK and NOK / SEK. Today, almost all major, professional currency brokers offer the Swedish krona in their forex ranges, which is why it is easy to get started with currency trading with SEK – regardless of whether you are looking to speculate in the short term or invest in the long term. It is important to remember when trading in Swedish kronor, however, that the spread for currency pairs where SEK is included is often larger than for the more popular world currencies, e.g. EUR / USD or GBP / USD. The reason for this is that liquidity is generally lower in currency pairs where a smaller currency is included.

The Scandinavian platform Skilling is a favorite among many traders, with a self-designed platform, super-fast and intuitive interface with 100% transparency and the ability to trade with almost 2000 different CFD assets – including SEK in a number of different currency pairs. Register in under 1 minute, and discover a faster, better and more modern way of trading with your new demo account.

How Sweden’s monetary union took shape and then dissolved

The Swedish krona is a currency that has existed since 1873 when Sweden, together with Denmark, chose to replace the old currency units Daler and Riksdaler. Daler was mainly made of silver and copper, and later also in the form of banknotes.

In 1875, on April 1, Norway also joined the Swedish-Danish monetary union around the krona. This union was called the Scandinavian Coin Union or the Scandinavian Coin Convention and the monetary system was based on gold. Over the years, Sweden’s, Denmark’s and Norway’s different crowns were eventually released from each other to fit in with each country’s national monetary policy. In this way, the countries could independently influence inflation, interest rates and the like in a simpler way.

Sweden and the European Monetary Union

In 1995, a majority of the Swedish people voted in favor of joining the EU – and a new chapter in Swedish politics thus began. Discussions on a future common monetary policy were already taking place in the 1990s, but it would be a couple of years into the 00s before a European monetary union actually became a reality. Of the EU’s total of 27 member states, 19 are members of EMU – and have thus switched to having the Euro as their official currency. For Sweden, however, the proposal was voted down in 2003, and the official currency remains the Swedish krona.

Value and denominations

The Swedish krona is divided into 100 öre. Despite the fact that the penny has not appeared as an actual denomination since 2010, many goods are still priced with decimals, ie the penny. When using a debit card, the total cost is often rounded to the nearest whole krona.

The Swedish monetary system recently underwent an extensive reform, during which all coins and banknotes were exchanged for some new denominations as well as new designs. A two-crown was introduced and all coins except the gold-colored ten-crowns were exchanged. The banknotes also received new costumes, with new Swedish profiles and a two-hundred-dollar banknote as a new addition. It is worth mentioning, however, that the exchange of banknotes and coins puzzled many because Sweden is already so far ahead in its quest for a cashless society.

NOK/SEK

Den norska kronan har generellt sett alltid varit avsevärt mycket starkare än den svenska. Under det sista året har dock förhållandet varit det omvända – Sveriges valuta har blivit mer värd än Norges. Den främsta orsaken till detta är att många investerare tagit ut pengar från norska oljeaktier och växlat från NOK till SEK, eller NOK till USD, etc. Oljerysaren under första kvartalet av 2020 fick även stora konsekvenser för den norska kronan, som under mars månad föll handlöst och tappade över 30% i värde.

EUR/SEK

Den svenska kronan har tappat mot Euron de sista två åren. Sverige var länge en av de sämsta valutorna för carry trading, då landet hade en negativ ränta under en lång tid. Detta har emellertid ändrats på sistone, då Sveriges ekonomi klarat sig relativt bra i spåren av Covid-19 jämfört med andra Europeiska länder. De senaste veckorna har det verkligen gått framåt för svenska kronor, som gått från 11.2 mot Euron till 10.65.

GBP/SEK

Storbritannien är en viktig handelspartner för Sverige, och GBP/SEK är ett av de mest handlade valutaparen med svenska kronan. Pundet har historiskt sett alltid varit starkt i förhållande till kronan, och kursen har ganska stabilt pendlat mellan ungefär 10-14 kr genom åren. Efter ett rekorduselt år för kronan i fjol, har våren 2020 sett desto bättre ut – och SEK har hämtat mark även mot det brittiska pundet. GBP har i sin tur att erfara en osäker kursutveckling i spåren av det segdragna Brexit-kaoset samt det faktum att Storbritannien drabbats hårt av Covid-19 – och att pandemin dessutom ser ut att fördröja det EU/brittiska handelsavtal som skulle vara på plats senast till årsskiftet 2020/2021.

USD/SEK

Dollarn har bjudit på ett rejält framgångsrally de senaste åren, vilket förstås har märkts även i kursen mot SEK. I takt med att den svenska kronan har tappat rejält och dollarn istället bara blivit starkare och starkare, har priset för en USD legat stabilt dyrt kring 9-10 kr under relativt lång tid. En bottennivå för kronan, med ett USD-pris på långt över 10 kr, nåddes i mitten av mars då börserna föll och alltfler vände sig till dollarn som en trygg hamn. Sedan dess har dock en viss återhämtning skett för SEK (och en viss försvagning av USD), och många analytiker tycks förutspå en tilltagande stabilisering av kronans värde.