• Giddy euphoria about the Swedish economy
• Swedish banks to outstrip European competitors

Sweden's fourth biggest bank Swedbank posted a stronger-than-expected fourth-quarter profits and was back in the black for the full year.

"Prior to 2010 we expected a gradually rising profit trend. In fact, we now see that profit for the full-year was stronger than anticipated, largely thanks to the recovery in the Baltic countries, which resulted in significantly lower credit impairments" CEO Michael Wolf said in a statement.

The bank said it expected earnings before impairments gradually to improve. It also proposed a buyback programme of up 10 percent of outstanding Swedbank shares.

Fourth-quarter operating profit was 3.4 billion kronor ($523.6 million) and the bank concluded the year with 7.4 billlion kronor in profit, compared to a loss of 10 billion kronor in 2009.

Swedbank's results follow strong earnings from other Nordic banks.

Sweden's third largest bank SEB said Friday its net profit for 2010 was up six-fold thanks to a sharp reduction in credit losses in the Baltic countries.

The top Nordic bank Nordea on Wednesday posted a 15-percent-hike in net profit for 2010 and a 72-percent-jump in the fourth quarter, largely due to Sweden's strong economic recovery.