The latest issue of Focus on Business and the Labour Market studies the reasons why men and women respectively leave their posts as CEOs, as well as the degree that the company's results and composition of the board (such as age and sex) can influence this. The analysis shows that the probability that a female CEO resigns increases in homogeneous boards. This pattern does not occur among male CEOs. The study also shows that female CEOs are less pressured to leave when the company is doing poorly. Among Sweden's CEOs, 12 percent are women, while among companies listed on the stock market, the corresponding figure is only 2.4 percent.

The publication also includes two studies dealing with globalisation of the Swedish economy.

Swedish industry more and more dependent on other countries

In the second article, Swedish dependence of global value chains is studied. The study shows that Swedish dependence has increased concerning exports, imports and offshoring, that is, moving the operations to other countries.

It also indicates that domestic Swedish manufacturing is moved abroad more and more, but this occurs at a slower rate. The main reason behind the increasing outsourcing is an expansion of Swedish companies to growth countries such as China, India and Eastern Europe.

New technology important for direct investments

The last article is a study about incoming and outgoing direct investments for Sweden. The results indicate that the driving forces behind direct investments vary from country to country. The motive to look for new technology tends to be an important reason for direct investments, both regarding Sweden and the outgoing Swedish direct investments in the US and the UK. The analysis also shows that establishing a business to increase proximity to local foreign markets can be an important explanation for Swedish direct investments in the US and the UK.

Focus on Business and Labour Market, autumn 2013