Why Is Beyonce Being Blamed For Surprise Inflation In Sweden?
While the war between Ukraine and Russia and supply chain disruptions are behind the rising inflation, Beyonce may also have a role to play. Confused? Well, Beyonce started her Renaissance World Tour with Sweden last month and her presence surged the demand for hotels and restaurants to such an extent that it has started to show up in the country's economic data.
The country reported higher-than-expected inflation of 9.7% in the month of May. Michael Grahn, an economist, says that Beyonce helped raise the prices of hotels. She is also the reason behind the unexpected strong upswing in recreational and cultural prices.
"I wouldn't ... blame Beyoncé for [the] high inflation print, but her performance and global demand to see her perform in Sweden apparently added a little to it," he wrote in an email to the BBC.
"[The Inflation is ] definitely not normal," Grahn told CNN. “Stars come here all the time, [but] we seldom see effects like this.”
The singer is on tour after seven long years and it comes as no surprise that it is a huge economic event. Demand for hotels shot up within days and the prices soared like never before. BBC reported that this run could very well gross £2 billion by the time it ends.
In the UK, 60,000 people descended on Cardiff, including fans from Lebanon, the US, and Australia. Demand for hotel rooms tied to the concert soared to such an extent that some homeless families being housed in a hotel by the local council were removed to make room for the fans, as reported by The Guardian.
Beyonce and Inflation in Sweden
Michael Grahn says that the inflation figure only decreased by 0.2% in May. "Perhaps all that isn’t just down to her as there are other events taking place, but when you think about what was the cause, she is the prime suspect," he said, as per NBC.
"It’s not just out of the blue, we did hear a month ago that it was very hard for her fans to get accommodation and that hotel rates went up. It seems to be a reasonable guess," he added.
Grahn also talked about how the economists predicted inflation to drop from 8.4% to 7.8%, however, it only reached 8.2%. One of the reasons that it didn't decline as much as it should have is because of the influx of foreigners to Sweden.
Beyonce Fans Flocked Stockholm Hotels
The rise in inflation isn't all to do with ticket sales. Rather, it’s got to do with the boost the hospitality sector got from this concert. Beyonce performed in Stockholm twice on May 10 and 11 and the fans flocked like there's no tomorrow to both the shows.
The fans came from every corner of the world to take advantage of the weak Swedish currency and also the cheap ticket prices in this country compared to the others.
Grahn assessed that the concert days accounted for 0.2 of the 0.3 percentage points addition to the inflation figure.
As per The Washington Post, visitors from US, Germany, and Britain accounted for the most number of bookings in the city in that period of time.
How Do I Get Tickets For The Beyonce Renaissance World Tour?
You need to register as a verified fan. Shows are grouped together in order to make the registration easier. Deadlines for the registration may vary by city, to be sure check the dates for your desired tour stop.