For the first three quarters of 2014 Systembolaget (the Swedish alcohol retail monopoly) made a profit (operating result) of 297 million kronor (32 million euro), a substantial increase over last year, according to a press release from the company.
Systembolaget’s revenues (turnover) was for the first nine months in 2014 SEK 19.2 billion (2 bn euro), an increase of SEK 537 million over the same period last year.
Systembolaget, and the monopoly supporters, have the habit of implying that Systembolaget is not operating for profit. Therefore, it is perhaps worth emphasizing that Systembolaget actually makes a not insignificant profit. But it is of course relatively easy to turn a profit when you have a monopoly.
