SWEDISH GOVT. ENTERS “TRANSACTION PHASE.”

It looks like Sweden is inching towards what Financial Markets Minister Mats Odell called a “transaction phase.” The government has reportedly appointed a five-member council to advise it on the ensuing privatization deals, which as we all know includes V&S-owned Absolut. The council’s decision, said Odell, will carry a lot of influence in the final transactions.

“We are now gradually moving into more of an execution phase or a transaction phase,” Odell said in a news conference.

While he denied that a transaction is right around the corner, he said the government is “gradually moving” forward in “the direction in which we want these firms to move.”