"Swedish Property Giants Face Billions in Write-Downs Amid Market Uncertainty"
Two of Sweden's largest property companies, SBB and Heimstaden, announced multibillion-crown writedowns in their 2023 results due to a European property rout caused by a sharp rise in interest rates. SBB wrote down the value of its property by over 13 billion Swedish crowns, while Heimstaden wrote down the value of its investment properties by 31 billion crowns, leading to significant losses for both companies. Both companies expressed cautious optimism about the market's future, with SBB CEO Leiv Synnes stating that they are at the beginning of a period where conditions in the financial markets are improving. Sweden's central bank chief Erik Thedeen highlighted commercial property as the main threat to banks, emphasizing the country's vulnerability due to its heavily indebted property market.