Report: Swedish Business Ties Support Nearly 12,000 Georgia Jobs 

Georgia’s trade and investment ties with Sweden sustain 11,775 jobs, according to a recent report by the Scandinavian nation’s embassy in the United States. 

The 2024 edition of Sweden Creates Jobs in the U.S., released every three years, tracked $209.2 million in yearly Georgia goods exports to Sweden, led by tall oil (a forestry byproduct), supporting 483 jobs. Services exports kicked in 839 more jobs. 

But the vast majority (10,454, according to the study) were created by Swedish-affiliated companies operating in the state, of which the embassy counted 48. 

Major Swedish job creators were operating across a variety of sectors, from tech and telecom to construction and forestry, including Thomas Concrete, Hitachi Energy, Skanksa, Elekta, Ericsson, Sinch, Securitas and many more. At least one Swedish company was present in nine of Georgia’s 14 congressional districts.

The consistent Swedish presence is part of a broader trend that has seen the country of just 10.5 million people become the No. 10 foreign investor in the United States, supporting 331,847 direct across all 50 states, with 379,000 created when trade is factored in.  

Georgia and the broader Southeast U.S. have garnered interest from Swedish officials like Mathias Hultgren, economic counselor and head of trade and economic affairs at the Swedish Embassy, who visited Atlanta on an exploratory mission this week. 

“We want to be, in a sense, agnostic about where to go, but understanding the potential of the different regions is very important,” Mr. Hultgren told Global Atlanta in an interview at the Cobb County offices of Thomas Concrete.

The South has a growing automotive sector, punctuated by the Volvo plant in neighboring South Carolina. While majority-owned by Chinese firm Geely, Volvo Cars — based in Mr. Hultgren’s hometown of Gothenburg — is still heavily Swedish in terms of its corporate makeup.

“During this trip, we have noticed, of course, the e-mobility sector and the ambitions here,” Mr. Hultgren said of Georgia. “Here we have big companies with a lot of knowhow and expertise where I think it makes sense for us to understand if there are more opportunities.” 

Connected mobility and road safety are related offshoots in a country known for telecom innovators like Nokia and Ericsson, and where the Vision Zero Initiative was enacted 30 years ago with the goal of eliminating all road deaths. As of 2020, the risk of a fatal car crash on Swedish roads was about a quarter of that in the U.S. 

With new-energy vehicles and burgeoning demand for power generation thanks to data centers, Sweden is also focused on minerals and mining, where national champions like Volvo Group (the owner of Mack trucks), Scania, Epiroc, Atlas Copco and others account for about two-thirds of the global underground mining equipment market. While working its way through bankruptcy currently, Sweden’s Northvolt, which makes its battery cells with fossil-free energy, is one of few  European challengers to EV battery juggernauts mostly concentrated in Asia. 

With Sweden’s recent NATO accession, defense will be a sector ripe for collaboration, along with artificial intelligence, fintech, and life sciences, particularly as Sweden leverages its expertise in cancer diagnostics and treatment, Mr. Hultgren said. 

The embassy, he added, is still formulating its plan for economic diplomacy under the new Trump administration, which has shown a willingness to upend trade and investment orthodoxy. 

However things shift, though, emphasizing the nations’ productive bilateral partnership seems prudent, he said. 

“Sweden values its strong transatlantic partnership with the U.S.,” Swedish Ambassador Urban Ahlin said in an introduction to the report. “As a member of the European Union and with our recent accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, we look forward to further deepening our friendship and collaboration, as we work together to address global security challenges, promote innovation and sustainability, and foster economic and technological advancements.”

Georgia has the existing Swedish investors and cultural infrastructure to take advantage of the next phase of the countries’ 400-year friendship. It’s home to both the Swedish-American Chamber of Commerce Georgia and an honorary consulate headed up by Tom Rosseland, who accompanied Mr. Hultgren during his visit. 

Another intangible: More than 41,000 Georgians trace their ancestry back to Sweden.

With the new SAS Scandinavian Airlines flight from Atlanta to Copenhagen, which offers onward service to Stockholm and many other Swedish cities, they now have an easier time reaching home.

See the list of 638 Swedish companies in the U.S. here, a Georgia page here, and an interactive U.S. map at https://www.swedencreatesusjobs.com. 

See a fact sheet below outlining Swedish ties with Georgia:

georgia2024