Capital Market

The deficit as a percentage of GDP in the last 12 months has dropped to zero (-0.4%) as of May, the lowest rate since 2008. This is according to May data published today (Thursday) by the Ministry of Finance. This is the fifth month in a row that the state budget surplus has been measured. The total budget surplus since the beginning of the year amounted to NIS 33.3 billion, compared with a deficit of NIS 34.8 billion in the corresponding period last year. The budget surplus measured in May alone amounted to NIS 1.4 billion, compared with a NIS 7.8 billion deficit measured in May last year

A new estimate, the second this year, of the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on the Israeli economy, indicates a worsening in the decline in the gross domestic product in the first quarter by 1.9%, compared to the estimate published last month, according to which growth in Israel was only 1.6%. It should be noted that the gross domestic product per capita recorded a more significant decrease of 3.5% due to the increase in the population. Hogg argues that two consecutive quarters of negative growth indicate the beginning of a recession, but at present, there is no data on the second...

Israel's economy is ranked 25th out of 63 countries defined as "developed", in the Competitiveness Index of the Swiss Research Institute IMD represented in Israel by the Association of Chambers of Commerce. , Only in 53rd place. The IMD Research Institute is one of the world's leading research institutes that examines once a year the degree of competitiveness between national economies on the basis of various criteria. The Global Competitiveness Index, published annually by the Institute, ranks 63 countries according to various economic parameters and is based on data collected from...

The chief economist at the Ministry of Finance predicts that 2022 will end with a revenue surplus of NIS 70 billion compared to the projected revenues when preparing the state budget. According to the latest macroeconomic forecast of the Chief Economist, all revenues in 2022 will amount to NIS 456.6 billion, compared to a forecast of revenues of only NIS 387 billion when preparing the state budget. This surplus, mainly due to an increase in tax revenues, led to a significant reduction in the deficit, which in May reached almost 0% relative to GDP. The surplus revenue is what has allowed...

The consumer price index rose in June, according to forecasts, by 0.4%. The rise in the index in June accelerates the rate of inflation in Israel and it now reached 4.4% - a record since March 2011. The most significant price increases were recorded in transportation items, which increased by 2.4%, housing, which increased by 0.7%, culture and entertainment, which increased by 0.7%, and health, which increased by 0.6%. On the other hand, due to seasonality, there were significant price decreases in the vegetable and fruit sections, which decreased by 8.5% and clothing and footwear, which...

The unemployment rate in Israel is still very low, but at the same time, the volume of layoffs in high-tech is beginning to affect the numbers of high-tech workers looking for work. According to data released today (Monday) by the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), there has been a slight decline in the unemployment rate in the past month, from 3.5% in May to 3.4% in June, which is 146.5 thousand unemployed - a very low figure in Israel. In May there were 150.6 thousand unemployed, which is 3.5% by international definition. At the same time, the employment service today released new data...

A review by the chief economist at the Ministry of Finance indicates that in Israel, the corona crisis did not lead to a wave of resignations and a mass exit from the labor market. According to the review, as of June 2022, the employment and participation rates in Israel have somewhat exceeded their pre-crisis level. The employment rate of those aged 15 and over in June 2022 was 61%, 0.1 percentage point higher than before the crisis, and the participation rate (63.4%) exceeded its pre-crisis level by half a percentage point. Nominally, the number of participants in the labor market in June...

In August, a budget deficit of about one billion shekels was measured, but the accumulated budget surplus in the last 12 months remained at 0.6% of GDP. Everything emerges from data published today (Thursday) by the Accountant General of the Ministry of Finance, CPA Yali Rotenberg. The cumulative surplus since the beginning of the year has dropped to the amount of NIS 34.4 billion - still unprecedented since the state has never had a situation where after eight months there is a surplus of funds in the state budget. What's more, the surplus is about 8% of the annual state budget

While inflation slowed slightly in August and the consumer price index fell by a higher rate than expected - 0.3% - the housing market is heating up and apartment prices continue to soar. Despite the moderation in the mortgage market and the drop in the number of apartments sold, in the months of June-July, the price of apartments increased by 1.3%, thus registering an annual increase of 17.9% - the highest jump since 2010

On New Year's Eve, the population of Israel is estimated at 9.593 million people. The population will reach about 10 million inhabitants at the end of 2024, and about 15 million inhabitants at the end of 2048 when the State of Israel will celebrate 100 years of existence, and about 20 million inhabitants at the end of 2065. Where will these people live? Well, Israel is not preparing for the expected growth in the coming years. Our politicians focus on the now and not the future. But - "Jerusalem, we have a problem"