Stockholm - Swedish banking group SEB on Friday reported a 25 per cent drop in operating profits for first-quarter 2009 and said it would join a voluntary guarantee programme for banks set up by the Swedish government.

Operating profits declined year-on-year to 1.8 billion kronor (215 million dollars), while net profits dropped 44 per cent to 1 billion kronor.

Stockholm - Mobile and broadband operations helped lift pre-tax earnings for Nordic telecommunications group Telia Sonera, the group said Friday.

The group said earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased 14 per cent year-on-year to 8.8 billion kronor (1.05 billion dollars).

Sales in the quarter increased 11 per cent to 27.5 billion kronor, while net income was flat on 4.4 billion kronor.

Stockholm- Swedish heavy-vehicle maker Volvo on Friday reported a pre-tax loss of 5.8 billion kronor (692 million dollars) for the first quarter of 2009, as demand "sharply" weakened.

In the corresponding business period of 2008, the Volvo Group, which does not include the Ford-owned car division, posted pre-tax income of 6.1 billion kronor.

Net sales plunged 27 per cent to 56 billion kronor, resulting in a net loss of 4.3 billion kronor for the quarter.

Stockholm - Swedish Crown Princess Victoria and her fiance Daniel Westling will not have to go house-hunting following their marriage next year. The Swedish cabinet Thursday decided to hand back the Haga Palace on the outskirts of Stockholm to King Carl XVI Gustaf, thereby allowing the crown princess and Westling to use the palace in future.

In a statement the 31-year-old princess said she "appreciated the generous offer" to live at Haga Palace.

Stockholm - Questions were raised Thursday over the impartiality of the Swedish judge who last week sentenced four men to year-long jail terms for operating the Pirate Bay website, which allows illegal file sharing. Swedish radio news reported that judge Tomas Norstrom is a member of two organizations engaged in copyright matters, including the Swedish Association for the Protection of Industrial Property.

The report said some of the lawyers who represented entertainment companies in the trial also belonged to the same associations.

Stockholm- Swedish banking group Swedbank Thursday posted a 2009 first quarter operating loss of 3.4 billion kroner (400 million dollars) and reported the write-down of its subsidiary in Ukraine.

Last year, the group that has 9 million private customers and 600,000 corporate customers at branches in Sweden, the Baltic countries and Ukraine, posted a first quarter operating profit of 3.7 billion kroner.

Total income in the 2009 first quarter increased 12 per cent to 9.4 billion kronor. Swedbank shares were down some 13 per cent in opening trading on the Stockholm bourse Thursday.