Helsingin Sanomat has a human interest angle on a financial results story. Last year OP, Finland's biggest bank, announced that it was offering borrowers the chance to go a year without repaying their loans. This deal, known in Finnish as a 'lyhennysvapaa', usually costs a handling fee and can entail a worsening of the terms of the loan. Not this time, said OP, because they wanted to stimulate the economy by increasing households' ability to spend money.
The offer expired in June, but HS reports that some 100,000 people have taken the offer (including those at Danske Bank who had a similar offer). In cash terms that's 450 million euros in the pockets of OP customers, and another 110 million euros available to Danske Bank borrowers.
This is, of course, a fantastic deal for the banks. Interest rates on Finnish mortgages are usually variable and indexed to a Euribor rate, so interest payments have been very low recently. Customers paying back those loans means lower profits for the banks--so offering a break from repayments actually increases bank profits.
HS sought out a Vantaa family who were fully aware of the bank's motivation, but took the offer anyway. They saved up the money to use while the mother is off work looking after their two-month-old second-born child, and put some towards a new, bigger apartment.
That's not how OP pitched the idea, but analysts interviewed by HS suggested that most of the money would have been used for consumption. The macro-economic effects are not to be sniffed at. They amount to about 0.2 percent of GDP, and are equivalent to a one percentage point cut in income tax rates.
While the government remains wary of borrowing to stimulate the economy, it's unlikely that households will provide a similar boost in the near future either. OP told HS that this was a one-time offer, not to be repeated anytime soon.
Refugees in the tabloids
Both tabloids lead with news about refugees. Iltalehti focuses on the Nordic Council meeting in Reykjavik, where asembled ministers stated and re-stated the urgency with which failed asylum-seekers should be removed from the region. Otherwise, said Norwegian Premier Erna Solberg, black market labour will increase.
Iltalehti's headline, of course, was 'New Nordic line: Standard of living refugees revealed and removed'.
Ilta-Sanomat, meanwhile, is concerned about a possible 'new wave' of refugees, this time coming via the eastern rather than the western border. The paper has interviewed a border guard official who points out that some 2,000 refugees from the Middle East have arrived in Norway from Russia this year, and that Finland has a much longer Russian border.
The Norwegian government has already asked for an explanation from the Russians, as they're not sure why so many have arrived at the tiny, Arctic border between those two countries, but almost none have crossed the 1,000km long border with Finland.
Football boss in sweary dust-up
The football season is now winding down, but a few issues remain to be settled. Promotion to Veikkausliiga hangs in the balance for PK-35 Vantaa, who are managed by former Ipswich Town striker Shefki Kuqi, and yesterday they played the first leg of a play-off with KTP Kotka.
Kosovo-born Finnish international Kuqi has brought some colour and noise to Finnish football since he returned as a coach, confronting referees on numerous occasions--and getting fines and bans aplenty for his rambunctious approach.
Yesterday, however, the referees struck back. Mikko Leino, the fourth official, responded to Kuqi's exhortations with a loud and clear "go f**k yourself!". In the calm and perhaps delicate world of Finnish football, this is exceptional and Ilta-Sanomat gives it plenty of coverage as a result.
All was well after the game, however, as IS reports.
"This was the first time," said Kuqi. "I was a bit shocked at first, but it doesn't bother me. Great that the referees too have feelings about the game. He said sorry."
SuomiFutis put Kuqi's reaction down to the strong interpersonal skills he picked up during his years in England.
"There they shout "f**k off" all the time, and nobody gets angry," said Kuqi.
Kuqi himself might still see red however, as his team could only manage a scoreless draw with KTP and goes to Kotka on Saturday for the second leg.