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A few hours remain until the expiration of the mandate given by the president to Benjamin Netanyahu to form a government, and the political system is eager to find out to whom Reuven Rivlin will grant the mandate in his place. In the bloc of parties trying to bring about political change, workers are working so that the chairman of the Yesh Atid party, Yair Lapid, will receive the mandate and with him a large force to control events in the near future. All options are open. Yesterday there were quite a few talks in the Netanyahu bloc to resolve the political tangle and think of ways to...

The EU's investment bank EIB will provide NIS 30 million in financing to Brennmiller Energy for the construction of a plant for innovative thermal energy storage systems, which will be established near Dimona and will provide the city's residents with about 100 new jobs. Funding for the new plant is made possible as a result of Israel's participation in the European Horizon 2020 Framework Program for the Advancement of Research and Innovation. The loan is supported by the European Commission as part of the financing of InnovFin Energy Demonstration Projects. The European Investment Bank...

The Ministry of Health updated Friday that 2,479 people were diagnosed in Corona last week - a figure that is about half the week before, when 5,011 people were diagnosed with the virus. This is the lowest figure since June 2020. The total number of people infected in Israel since the outbreak is 833,707. Also, 56 people died this week - after 93 people died last week. This is the lowest figure since November. The total death toll from the virus is now 6,220. In the last day, 331 people have been diagnosed with corona carriers. Out of 35,768 tests, the positive rate is 1%. The test data...

The Bank of Israel today publishes the annual report for 2020, which includes an extensive review of the effects of the corona on the economy. The bottom line, the report notes, is that there are considerable differences between sectors in the economy and society. Weaknesses of the socio-economic safety net and gaps between sectors. According to the report, the approval of the state budget for 2021 is essential to set priorities and implement plans to accelerate growth, especially in the areas of human capital and investment in public transport, communications, energy and environmental...

A serological test research done for Sheba Hospital staff who received the Pfizer vaccine revealed a significant decrease in their share of blood antibody levels, a few months after receiving the second vaccine. It is now being investigated whether other measures in the blood may indicate that the vaccines are still efficient. The research team led by Professor Gili Regev-Yohai is examining whether the effectiveness of the vaccine is declining. The hospital said "we are not sure this decline has any significance". One of the study participants reported that two weeks after the second...

The holes in Israel's social security network widened even before the corona crisis, according to data from the April edition of the publication "Social Security in the World" in the National Insurance Institute. According to the document, public welfare expenditure in Israel in 2019 was among the lowest in the OECD and stood at 16.3% of gross national product (GDP). This figure places Israel in 30th place out of 37 countries. 17% of GDP in 2017. In the Corona crisis itself, public spending increased at a rate similar to the OECD average, but it cannot be concluded that Israel has bridged...

The households of the Arabs in Israel are very vulnerable in relation to the households of the Jews, and accordingly suffered more severe damage during the Corona period, according to a report published by the Bank of Israel. The main reasons for this are low income and savings and lack of adequate infrastructure. The report noted that even before the corona, the Arab household was vulnerable: its average monthly income in 2018 was NIS 12,000 on average, compared with 18,000 in a Jewish household - a gap of 32%. 45% of Arab households are below the poverty level. Only in 29% of Arab...

Corona morbidity is declining - and more relief is underway: The government approved tonight (Friday), shortly before Shabbat, new aviation regulations that will allow vaccinated or recovering patients exposed to Corona patients to board flights, and the obligation to measure temperature at terminal entry and boarding will be abolished. Ministers have confirmed that the new regulations will be in force until April 8. In light of the approval to bring only 3,000 Israelis into Israel daily, in an approved outline it was decided to impose on the Director General of the Ministry of...

The mortgage market continues to boil: Bank of Israel data show that the volume of new mortgages taken out in February was NIS 7.3 billion, a jump of 19% compared to February last year, and of 11% compared to the average in the last 12 months. Similar to January, the average mortgage amount reached NIS 800,000 in February. The banking system notes that the strong data are due to high demand, for fear of continued price increases, and the lack of a plan to address the supply in the housing market on the horizon. In addition, economic uncertainty diminished with the gradual return to...