Today in Denmark: A roundup of the news on Thursday
Strong employment figures, apartment sales down after new tax rules kick in, Jewish community reports surge in antisemitism and more news from Denmark on Thursday.
High employment figures for December round off record year
The final employment figures for 2023 have been confirmed by Statistics Denmark and show a high level in keeping with the rest of last year.
The last month of 2023 saw 3,005,900 people in jobs in Denmark, an increase of 1,300 against November. The statistic accounts for both the private and public sectors and is based on tax information submitted by employers.
Going back almost three years, the number of employed in January 2021 was 2,762,000, demonstrating the surge in jobs in the post-pandemic period.
In 2023 alone, the number of employed increased by 31,100.
Economists expect the trend to tail off in 2024 but remain optimistic about a “soft landing” in which job losses will be largely avoided even as the labour market cools.
Vocabulary: blød landing – soft landing
January apartment sales down for first time in a decade
The first month of the year normally sees a rise in apartment sales compared to the quiet Christmas period, but that was not the case in 2024 when there were fewer apartments sold than in December 2023.
The last time January sales failed to exceed December was in 2011, according to real estate media Boligsiden.
New property tax rules, which took effect on January 1st, are the likely reason for the reversed trend, Boligsiden’s economist and head of communications Birgit Daetz told news wire Ritzau.
READ ALSO: What do homeowners need to know about new Danish property tax rules?
“For large parts of the owner-occupied apartment market, the [tax] changes have led to significant increases in property tax, but those who managed to buy and take over a home before the turn of the year were able to secure lower taxation from 2024 onwards,” Daetz said.
Sales of apartments fell by 15 and 12 percent in Aarhus and Copenhagen respectively, while sales in Odense were unchanged.
Vocabulary: henholdsvis – respectively
Jewish community reports record levels of antisemitism
The Jewish Community in Denmark (Det Jødiske Samfund) registered 121 antisemitic incidents in Denmark last year, the highest number since 2012, when the society began recording such incidents.
The figure comes from a preliminary report from the community’s security department reported by newspaper Berlingske.
The incidents include threats and vandalism to antisemitic statements against Jews in Denmark.
“We as a community have said that in order not to provoke, we have to refrain from displaying Jewish symbols on the street,” the chairman of the Jewish Community in Denmark , Henri Goldstein, told Berlingske.
The figure includes incidents reported to the community but not necessarily those reported to police.
Vocabulary: hændelser – incidents
Øresund commutes hit record high but freight journeys down
The combined number of ferry and bridge journeys by private individuals across the Øresund between Denmark and Sweden hit a new record in 2023.
Last year saw over 100,000 private trips over the crossing on average each day, according to Øresundsbron, the operator of the Øresund Bridge.
Train travel saw the largest increase of any journey type, the company said.
Freight traffic over the Øresund meanwhile declined in 2023 with a six percent decrease in goods trains as well as lorries and commercial vans. The overall level of goods traffic was the same as in Covid-hit year 2020.
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High employment figures for December round off record year
The final employment figures for 2023 have been confirmed by Statistics Denmark and show a high level in keeping with the rest of last year.
The last month of 2023 saw 3,005,900 people in jobs in Denmark, an increase of 1,300 against November. The statistic accounts for both the private and public sectors and is based on tax information submitted by employers.
Going back almost three years, the number of employed in January 2021 was 2,762,000, demonstrating the surge in jobs in the post-pandemic period.
In 2023 alone, the number of employed increased by 31,100.
Economists expect the trend to tail off in 2024 but remain optimistic about a “soft landing” in which job losses will be largely avoided even as the labour market cools.
Vocabulary: blød landing – soft landing
January apartment sales down for first time in a decade
The first month of the year normally sees a rise in apartment sales compared to the quiet Christmas period, but that was not the case in 2024 when there were fewer apartments sold than in December 2023.
The last time January sales failed to exceed December was in 2011, according to real estate media Boligsiden.
New property tax rules, which took effect on January 1st, are the likely reason for the reversed trend, Boligsiden’s economist and head of communications Birgit Daetz told news wire Ritzau.
READ ALSO: What do homeowners need to know about new Danish property tax rules?
“For large parts of the owner-occupied apartment market, the [tax] changes have led to significant increases in property tax, but those who managed to buy and take over a home before the turn of the year were able to secure lower taxation from 2024 onwards,” Daetz said.
Sales of apartments fell by 15 and 12 percent in Aarhus and Copenhagen respectively, while sales in Odense were unchanged.
Vocabulary: henholdsvis – respectively
Jewish community reports record levels of antisemitism
The Jewish Community in Denmark (Det Jødiske Samfund) registered 121 antisemitic incidents in Denmark last year, the highest number since 2012, when the society began recording such incidents.
The figure comes from a preliminary report from the community’s security department reported by newspaper Berlingske.
The incidents include threats and vandalism to antisemitic statements against Jews in Denmark.
“We as a community have said that in order not to provoke, we have to refrain from displaying Jewish symbols on the street,” the chairman of the Jewish Community in Denmark , Henri Goldstein, told Berlingske.
The figure includes incidents reported to the community but not necessarily those reported to police.
Vocabulary: hændelser – incidents
Øresund commutes hit record high but freight journeys down
The combined number of ferry and bridge journeys by private individuals across the Øresund between Denmark and Sweden hit a new record in 2023.
Last year saw over 100,000 private trips over the crossing on average each day, according to Øresundsbron, the operator of the Øresund Bridge.
Train travel saw the largest increase of any journey type, the company said.
Freight traffic over the Øresund meanwhile declined in 2023 with a six percent decrease in goods trains as well as lorries and commercial vans. The overall level of goods traffic was the same as in Covid-hit year 2020.
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