An economist in Sweden has cited a “Beyoncé blip” for the country’s higher than expected inflation rate last month.
“Beyoncé’s start of her world tour in Sweden seems to have coloured May inflation, how much is uncertain,” tweeted Michael Grahn, Danske Bank’s chief economist in Sweden on Wednesday.
He estimated the “Bills, Bills, Bills” singer is responsible for “probably 0.2 percent of the 0.3 percent that hotels/restaurant added.”
Beyoncé kicked off the Renaissance World Tour with concerts in Stockholm on May 10 and 11, causing high demand for hotel accommodations and driving up prices.
"I wouldn't ... blame Beyoncé for [the] high inflation print,” Grahn told the BBC, “but her performance and global demand to see her perform in Sweden apparently added a little to it.”
He told the Financial Times “it’s quite astonishing for a single event. We haven’t seen this before.”
Last month, Forbes estimated that Beyoncé could earn $2.1 billion U.S. from her Renaissance tour, which stops in Toronto on July 8 and 9 and in Vancouver on Sept. 11.