Banking & Finance Bank of Israel battle against ‘sticky’ inflation rages on The Bank of Israel on Monday raised its benchmark interest rate by another half a percentage point, and a senior official said more increases were likely needed to rein in inflation that remains above a five percent rate. The central bank lifted its key rate to 4.25 percent – its highest level since late 2008 […] February 21, 2023
Economy Israel economy forecast to slow sharply in 2023 amid rate hikes Israel’s economy grew 6.5 percent in 2022 – slower than 2021’s 8.6 percent expansion but still much stronger than most Western countries – the Central Bureau of Statistics said, citing solid growth in consumer spending, exports and investment. The full-year reading exceeded the 6.3 percent projected by the Bank of Israel and the finance ministry […] February 17, 2023
Economy Israel inflation hits highest since 2008 at 5.4% in January Israel’s inflation rate hit a 14-year high in January, rising to 5.4 percent over the prior 12 months, the Central Bureau of Statistics reported. The rate was expected to remain at 5.3 percent, according to a Reuters poll of economists. The consumer price index, in which the bureau slightly adjusted its basket weightings, rose 0.3 […] February 16, 2023
Economy Housing weight rises to 26% in Israel’s consumer price basket Housing remains the highest household expense for Israelis and has risen as a proportion of total costs, the Central Bureau of Statistics said on Monday in an updated basket of the consumer price index. Starting with the January CPI that will be issued on Wednesday, housing will have a new weight of 26 percent in […] February 14, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel delays bill to freeze mortgage rates Israel will delay passing a law that would freeze mortgage rates for first-time home buyers, said finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, as the proposal faces opposition from the country’s central bank. Smotrich and the head of the parliamentary finance committee, Moshe Gafni, said in a joint statement they would hold off for a week to allow […] February 13, 2023
Markets Israel’s renewable firm valued at over $2bn in New York debut Shares of Enlight Renewable Energy slipped in their US market debut on Friday, giving the Israel-based renewable energy developer a market capitalisation of $2.07 billion. The stock opened at $17.90, slightly below its initial public offering price of $18 per share. It raised $252 million by offering 14 million shares on Thursday, lower than its […] February 12, 2023
Tech Venture fund to invest in Israel’s ‘new space’ industry Earth & Beyond Ventures, a new early-stage venture fund investing in Israel’s emerging commercial space ecosystem, has launched with commitments of $125 million to leverage Israel’s expertise in deeptech, aerospace, and satellite engineering. The fund is backed by manufacturer and Nasa supplier Corning Inc, Japanese electronics giant Kyocera Corp, Israeli satellite firm SpaceCom and Samtec, […] February 10, 2023
Logistics India’s Adani to keep investing in Israel after Haifa port takeover Indian magnate Gautam Adani said on Tuesday he would keep investing in Israel after his group took over one of the country’s main ports. The entrance of Adani has spurred Israel’s leaders to revive hopes of creating a trade gateway connecting the Mediterranean port of Haifa and the broader Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, which […] February 1, 2023
Manufacturing Israeli EV startup targets Europe with small urban model Israeli electric vehicle (EV) startup City Transformer aims to launch production of its small urban CT-2 model in Western Europe by the end of 2024 and will soon launch a Series B funding round to raise $50 million, the company said on Monday. Chief executive Asaf Formoza told Reuters the company, which has so far […] January 30, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel’s Playtika offers $738m for Angry Birds maker Playtika Holding Corp on Thursday sweetened its offer for Finnish game maker Rovio, best known for its “Angry Birds” franchise, to €683 million ($737.50 million), as a consolidation in the industry gathers pace. The offer values each share of Rovio at €9.05, about 60 percent higher than the company’s closing price on January 19. It […] January 20, 2023
Economy Israel public debt burden slides to 60.9% of GDP in 2022 Israel’s public debt fell in 2022 to 60.9 percent of gross domestic product from 68 percent in 2021, the finance ministry said, citing strong economic growth and a budget surplus. The ministry said economic growth of 6.3 percent and a decline of a billion shekels in government debt led to the large drop in the […] January 19, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel worried looser fiscal policy could stop inflation from easing Bank of Israel policymakers expressed concern that the new government will boost spending too much and harm its ability to return inflation to its one to three percent annual target. Minutes from the January 2 rates decision showed that the monetary policy committee was mostly upbeat that price pressures were starting to ease, saying some […] January 17, 2023
Economy Israeli manufacturers seeks steep cut in food tax Israel’s Manufacturers’ Association has proposed tax cuts on food along with a host of other measures aimed at strengthening Israeli economic competitiveness and dealing with the country’s high cost of living. The association’s economic plan, submitted to Israel’s prime minister and ministers of finance and economy, proposed cutting the value added tax (VAT) on food […] January 16, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel central bank backs steps to ease inflation and cost of living Bank of Israel governor Amir Yaron has said a series of government steps aimed at easing inflation and the cost of living were reasonable, but that short term interest rates still could rise further. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday said Israel would cancel or cut back recent hikes in property taxes, water and energy […] January 13, 2023
Economy Israel to trim taxes, water and energy costs to fight inflation Israel will cancel or cut back recent hikes in property taxes, water and energy costs, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, unveiling preliminary measures to ease inflation. Finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, speaking alongside Netanyahu at a televised news conference, said the government would maintain fiscal responsibility while pursuing the plan. “Our economy has entered […] January 12, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel sells $2bn of 10-year green bonds in global offering Israel sold $2 billion of 10-year “green” bonds in an international bond offering, the finance ministry said on Tuesday. The bonds, it said, were sold at 95 basis points over the benchmark US government bond yield and received $12 billion of demand from some 200 investors in 35 countries including the United States, United Kingdom, […] January 11, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel names new finance ministry chief as 2023 budget work starts Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich has named attorney Shlomi Heisler as director general of the finance ministry. Heisler was most recently head of the National Infrastructure Committee and is now the most senior civil servant at the treasury. He replaces Ram Belinkov, who on Tuesday said he was stepping down amid the new government taking […] January 5, 2023
Economy Israel rates set to peak around 4% and curb inflation The Bank of Israel is near the end of an aggressive interest rate hike cycle that should be enough to bring inflation back into its target range, deputy governor Andrew Abir said. On Monday, the central bank raised its benchmark interest rate by a half-point to a 14-year high of 3.75 percent, the seventh increase […] January 4, 2023
Banking & Finance Bank of Israel raises key rate and seeks fiscal restraint The Bank of Israel raised its benchmark interest rate by half a point on Monday, and will likely continue its increases a bit more in coming months, saying it seeks to curb inflation running above five percent. The central bank as expected lifted its key rate to a 14-year high of 3.75 percent from 3.25 […] January 3, 2023
Banking & Finance Israeli bank freezes mortgage rates for hard-hit homeowners Israel’s Bank Hapoalim will not pass on to customers the central bank’s next increase to interest rates, citing the struggles of homeowners faced with higher mortgage payments amid a broad spike in the cost of living. The Bank of Israel has raised its benchmark interest rate to 3.25 percent from 0.1 percent since April, resulting […] January 2, 2023
Sustainability Israel to abandon plastic tax despite environmental concerns Israel’s new government will abandon the country’s tax on single-use plastic plates and utensils, finance minister Bezalel Smotrich said, despite environmental concerns. The decision, in apparent defiance of global efforts to reduce the amount of plastic waste that is polluting oceans, comes after opposition to the tax from religious parties that said it unfairly targeted […] January 2, 2023
Banking & Finance Israel awards licence to investors to set up new digital bank Israel’s banking regulator on Sunday approved a conditional licence and control permit to a group of entrepreneurs to establish a new online bank, the second addition to the highly concentrated banking sector in three years. The Bank of Israel said its banking supervision department had completed the inspection process for the new institution named Esh […] December 26, 2022
