Sweden had a light response to the pandemic, and it quickly found itself with a major outbreak, and a high rate of deaths. Yet without implementing any major controls, with significantly less social distancing among the population, without significant mask usage, the outbreak seems to have slowed substantially.
It's almost impossible to make these comparisons in real-time, without the benefit of hindsight. We won't know if this approach made sense until after the pandemic is over. But it's certainly an interesting data point.
One thing that is clear is that it's far too complex to look at a couple metrics, compare them against wildly different populations, and form a conclusion. Sweden had a higher unemployment rate than many of its peers before the pandemic. Exports are a staggering 47% of GDP in Sweden. Sweden made the same mistake as many other countries, putting COVID-positive patients in nursing homes.
But the longer the pandemic remains under control in Sweden, with comparatively little social distancing and mask usage, the more interesting it becomes, particularly as countries which implemented strong lockdowns see renewed outbreaks.