Beyoncé’s show in the country’s capital Stockholm contributed to higher-than-expected inflation, according to economists at a major Swedish bank.
The current surge in inflation is often attributed to issues such as the global economic slowdown, central bank monetary policies, geopolitical uncertainties and supply and demand issues. However, these are not the only reasons.

The most unlikely reason comes from a music star: Beyoncé, according to economists at Danske Bank, Sweden’s largest bank.

Increase inflation for an entire country?
Consumer prices rose 9.7% in May from a year earlier, down from 10.5% in April, the first time inflation has been below 10% in more than six months, although it remains high, according to AFP.

“The continued fall in electricity and food prices contributed to the lower inflation rate in May,” said Mikael Nordin, a statistician at Statistics Sweden. However, the cost of some goods and services increased, “such as hotel and restaurant visits, entertainment and clothing,” the agency said.

Beyoncé at the opening night in Stockholm.

Elaborating further, Michael Grahn, chief economist at Danske Bank, said Beyoncé’s tour “probably” added between 0.2 and 0.3 percentage points to Sweden’s inflation rate in May.

The Swedish government noted in its inflation report that the inflation rate was influenced by hotel and restaurant prices, which rose 3.3% from the previous month, and prices for “entertainment services”, including concert tickets.

“Beyoncé starting her world tour in Sweden seems to have colored May inflation, the extent of which is uncertain,” Grahn said in a social media post.

Tens of thousands of fans flocked to Stockholm in mid-May for two concerts that kicked off her first solo tour in seven years. Estimates put the number of people at each concert at 46,000, with some forced to stay outside the city as hotels filled up.

Many fans have been flying in from all over to see the shows, taking advantage of the devalued Swedish krona and cheap tickets, according to the BBC.

“I wouldn’t… blame Beyoncé for the high inflation, but her performance and the global demand to see her perform in Sweden seems to have added a bit to it,” Grahn wrote in an email to the BBC.

Rare effects
The Wall Street Journal quoted Grahn as saying that the effect was “very rare” and that he predicted things would return to normal by June.

Long lines of fans waiting for their idol in Stockholm.

But one analyst has warned the Financial Times (FT) that when Bruce Springsteen plays three concerts in Gothenburg in June, Sweden could see a similar rise in inflation.

Sweden’s central bank has raised its key interest rate several times in an effort to curb inflation. Overall, the central bank expects the Swedish economy to shrink by 0.7% in 2023, forecasting unadjusted inflation of 8.9% and rising unemployment.

Beyoncé’s tour kicks off in Stockholm, Sweden, then travels to Brussels, Cardiff, Edinburgh and five nights in London before concluding in the UK capital. She will make seven more appearances in Germany, the Netherlands and Poland before heading to Canada and the US, according to the Financial Times.

Major sporting and entertainment events frequently skew economic statistics, although economists say it is rare for a single event to do so.