PARIS, May 6 (Reuters) - Swedish people are warming to the idea of the joining the euro and joining the common currency would be an advantage in terms of cooperating with the euro area, Finance Minister Anders Borg said on Wednesday.
A poll last month found that the financial crisis had pushed Swedish voters narrowly in favour of joining the euro zone.
The public television channel SVT, which commissioned the survey, said it was the first to show the "Yes" camp in the lead since a referendum in 2003 in which a solid majority rejected adoption of the EU common currency.
"Obviously it would be an advantage for Sweden to join the euro and that would simplify a lot of the cooperation (with the euro area) but we have a situation where the public opinion is quite clear and we will not be able to join the euro without a referendum," he said at a news conference.
"As we perceive the situation it is quite clear that Europe is perceived as a stabilising force in this financial crisis so my impression is that Swedish people are getting more positive towards euro membership but this is a complicated issue that would take some time to deal with."
The Swedish crown
Sweden's centre-right government has ruled out holding another referendum during its current term of office, which runs to September 2010, and said a new vote is unlikely even in its next four-year term, if it wins the next election. (Reporting by Anna Willard; Editing by Andy Bruce)