Israel: A Resilient Global Economy
2010-05-25 07:55:56
Israel: A Resilient Global Economy Though it's a small country with limited resources, Israel stands out as one of the world's most competitive economies. In fact, The World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked Israel as the 23th (out of 134) most competitive economy in its 2008-2009 Global Competitive Index Information is in courtesy of the Minitsry of Industry, Trade and Labor (www.moital.gov.il) Though it's a small country with limited resources, Israel stands out as one of the world's most competitive economies.  In fact, The World Economic Forum (WEF) ranked Israel as the 23th (out of 134) most c ...More»

The Rest of the World Can Learn a Lot From the Israeli Formula for Growth
2010-02-16 13:26:11
Now is the time to take a close look at models. No, not those who strut the catwalks of London, Paris and other rallying points of international fashionistas. Instead, those economic models that might contain clues for post-recession policy. The European Union wants to jack its growth rate up from a meager 1% to 2%, and the United States would like to see its economy grow at an annual rate of at least 3%. Faster growth means more jobs, and an increased flow of tax revenues with which to bring down the huge deficits many countries are running. On offer are the Anglo-Saxon, more-or-less free-market model, modified to account for what we have ...More»

Israeli woman wins 2009 chemistry Nobel
2009-10-07 15:25:04
Israeli woman wins 2009 chemistry Nobel Dr. Anat Bashan, Yonath's research partner also commented and said, "No doubt that if anyone deserves a Nobel prize it's Ada – she's an amazing scientist and an incredible human being." Israeli scientist Ada Yonath aged 70, as well as American scientists Venkatraman Ramakrishnan and Thomas Steitz, were awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in chemistry on Wednesday, for mapping ribosomes, the protein-producing factories within cells, at the atomic level. Seventy year old Professor Ada Yonath from the Weizmann Institute in Rehovot.Photo: AP [file] The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said their work has ...More»

Property prices will fall back when interest drops
2009-10-02 07:51:32
Unlike some observers, Stanley Fischer doesn't think a bubble is developing in Israel's real estate market. The Bank of Israel that he heads keeps a close eye on property prices, which have not in fact risen much over the last 10 years, he says. Moreover, the central bank does what it can to keep bubbles in check, he says. In an interview with TheMarker ahead of a trip next week to the annual conference of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, which is being held in Istanbul, Fischer said property prices have been rising "a little" recently.  Advertisement   "That's natural when interest rates are low," he says. "I assu ...More»

Food Maker Osem's World Sales Figures Help Overcome Weakness in Israeli Market
2009-10-02 07:50:01
A 50% rise in export sales of Israeli food giant Osem, along with several purchases it made, helped offset losses Osem had in the Israel food market and helped the company finish the first quarter of 2007 with a rise in profits and revenues.   During the first quarter of 2009, Osem's revenues grew by 9% to NIS 847 million. The operating profits rose by 13% to NIS 108.2 million. The rise in sales was coupled by continuing cost-saving measures and efficiency steps. Osem's final profits rose by 9% as well to a level of NIS 77.1 million. ...More»

British Trade Unions, Boycott
2009-09-25 14:01:13
British labor unions agreed Thursday to support a boycott of some Israeli goods in response to the offensive in Gaza. The boycott, approved at the annual conference of the Trades Union Congress, calls for a ban on importing goods produced in some Israeli settlements, an end to arms trading with Israel and disinvestment from some companies. Union officials said the boycott would target products including dates, herbs, fruit and vegetables grown on Israeli settlements in the West Bank. "We will support a boycott of those goods and agricultural products that originate in illegal settlements through developing an effective, targeted consume ...More»

Bank of Israel, Govenor Stanley Fischer reports..
2009-09-25 13:58:43
While technically being out of the recession, Israel is facing difficult financial times, as employment is expected to continue rising, Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer said on Thursday. Speaking to Israel Radio, Fischer explained that Israel's relatively swift economic recuperation was due mainly to the rather good condition in which Israel encountered the global financial crisis, reflected by state's budget being nearly balanced in 2007. "The global financial crisis evoked substantially less damage here than in other countries in the world. We dealt with the crisis well, even though we didn't have the possibility to use the state ...More»

Recent Mergers and acquisition of Israeli companies by International companies
2009-09-25 13:49:12
 Recent International Mergers & Acquisitions  Recent Mergers and acquisition of Israeli companies by International companies ...More»

The Bank of Israel revised the macroeconomic forecasts for 2009 and 2010
2009-09-02 14:40:03
On 1 September 2009, the Bank of Israel revised the macroeconomic forecasts for 2009 and 2010 upwards as a result of positive information regarding economic activity in the second quarter of 2009, both globally and in Israel and in the light of improved forecasts of global growth and world trade. Based on National Accounts figures for the first half of 2009 and on economic indicators of the last few months, it appears that the decline in economic activity that had been expected to end only at the end of 2009 had effectivively ended in the second quarter. A similar pattern emerged also in other advanced economies. GDP increased in th ...More»

News and Business Opportunities in Israel
2009-07-16 14:03:44
  http://www.chamber.org.il/Default.aspx?mn=3&cat=3&lan=en-US ...More»

The World Economic Forum (WEF) last week published its 2009 annual report on enabling trade around the world.
2009-07-16 13:56:54
The World Economic Forum (WEF) last week published its 2009 annual report on enabling trade around the world. Published for the second time and covering 121 economies worldwide, the report presents a resource for dialogue and provides a yardstick of the extent to which economies have in place the necessary attributes for enabling trade and where improvements are most needed. The index has been revised since it was first published in 2008. The main changes concern the explicit inclusion of the export dimension in the index and the addition of an assessment of overall governance conditions to the business environment sub-index. C ...More»

Israel's economy to shrink 2% this year
2009-06-26 13:44:28
OECD said on Wednesday 24 June 29009 that Israel's economy will shrink 2% in 2009 as the global financial crises undermines demand for exports. Growth will recover in 2010, with the economy expanding 0.2%, the Paris-based OECD said in a report. Exports are expected to contract by 25% this year and expand by 2.6% next year, the OECD said. "Recession is now under way, due largely to high exposure to international trade, but it is also being tempered by the relatively mild difficulties in domestic markets and the absence of a house-price bubble," the report said. "Growth will only turn modestly positive at the end of this year".&n ...More»

Israel's foreign currency reserves totaled U.S.$ 42.5 billion at the end of 2008
2009-06-02 15:12:44
The Bank of Israel reported yesterday that its foreign currency reserves grew by U.S.$ 14 billion in 2008 and totaled U.S.$ 42.5 billion at the end of 2008. The Bank of Israel said that the growth in reserves last year is mainly the result of purchases of foreign currency by the Bank of Israel since the first quarter of 2008 as part of a program to increase the Bank's foreign exchange reserves. Last year U.S.$ 12.1 billion was purchased. For the first time in the past decade, the average level of foreign exchange reserves in December 2008 covered all the short-term external debt of the economy - 103%, compared with a level of covera ...More»

Global Survey: Israel is 24 in competitiveness
2009-06-02 15:11:09
According to a new report released on 18 May 2009 by IMD, Israel slipped three places compared with last year and its overall competitiveness in the world now ranks 24th. The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook (WCY) is the world's most renowned and comprehensive annual report on the competitiveness of nations ranking and analyzing how a nation's environment creates and sustains the competitiveness of nations. The IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2009, which ranks a total of 57 economies, analyses competitiveness along 329 variables, grouped into 4 categories: economic soundness, government efficiency, business, and infrastructures ...More»

The Israeli economy is now officially in recession.
2009-06-02 15:09:43
The Israeli economy is now officially in recession. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) fell sharply by 3.6 percent in the first quarter of 2009, in annual terms, Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics reported yesterday. This was much worse than most forecasts had predicted. The official definition of recession is economic contraction - negative economic growth - for two consecutive quarters. Since GDP fell 0.5% in the last quarter of 2008, Israel is now officially in a recession. All figures are in annualized terms. The economy did grow 1.3% in the 3rd quarter of last year, but the first three months of 2009 were Israel's worst ...More»

Economic Highlights - Israel - 1st Quarter 2009
2009-05-05 13:04:01
http://www.financeisrael.mof.gov.il/FinanceIsrael/Docs/En/EconomicHighlights/EconomicHighlights-2009-1.pdf ...More»

Business opportunities received from the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce.
2009-04-02 14:05:00
                                                                             84 Hahashmonaim St. Tel-Aviv 67132, Israel Tel  972-3-563-1020, Fax  972-3-5619027 http //www.chamber.org.il E-mail  chamber@chamber.org.il         April 2, 2009 ...More»

Economic & Financial Report March 12, 2009
2009-03-27 06:33:14
http://www.bankhapoalim.com - to view the Economic & Financial Report March 12, 2009 ...More»

FITCH RATES STATE OF ISRAEL'S USD SOVEREIGN BOND 'A'
2009-03-18 18:09:09
  Contact: Paul Rawkins, London, Tel: +44 (0) 20 7417 4239.Source: Bloomberg Fitch Ratings-London-18 March 2009: Fitch Ratings has todayassigned the State of Israel's upcoming 10-year USD sovereignbond an 'A' rating. The rating is in line with Israel'sLong-term foreign currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'A'which has a Stable Outlook. "The economy has deteriorated rapidly since the beginning ofthe year, largely reflecting a collapse in exports which, inturn, has fed through to a steep fall in tax revenues. Thissovereign bond issue, the first since 2006, comes on the backof a widening state deficit that could see the broader g ...More»

Advanced Technology Acquisition Corp. to Acquire Bioness
2009-02-20 12:14:28
Advanced Technology Acquisition Corp. (ATAC) has entered into a letter of intent to complete a business combination by means of a merger with Bioness, a Delaware corporation having significant business operations in Israel.  Pursuant to the Company's Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, the execution of the LOI affords the Company a six-month extension for completion of a business combination, until June 22, 2009.  The LOI provides that, following execution of a definitive agreement, Bioness will commence a tender offer for the purchase of ATAC's outstanding warrants for four cents per warrant.  The LOI further ...More»

Frutarom Acquires the Business of UK Company Oxford
2009-02-20 12:13:13
Frutarom Industries has signed an agreement to acquire the assets and business of the UK Company Oxford Chemicals for consideration of approximately $12m.  The consideration will be paid in full in cash at completion.  Completion of the transaction is expected to take place within the coming weeks.  The acquisition will be financed through a long-term bank loan.  Oxford's activity is highly synergetic with Frutarom's global Fine Ingredients Division, whose development laboratories and production facilities are located in the U.S., UK, Switzerland and Israel.  The acquisition is expected to enhance the product offeri ...More»

Tefron Announces a New Ticker Symbol
2009-02-20 12:12:34
On 26 December, Tefron announced that the ticker symbol for its ordinary shares has been changed to TFRLF.  The former symbol was TFR.  The new ticker symbol follows the suspension of Tefron's ordinary shares from trading on the New York Stock Exchange.  An application has been made for the ordinary shares to be quoted on the OTC Bulletin Board.  There is no guarantee that the shares will be quoted on the OTCBB.  Misgav’s Tefron ( http://www.tefron.com ) manufactures boutique-quality everyday seamless intimate apparel, active-wear and swimwear sold throughout the world by such name-brand marketers as Victoria's Secret ...More»

Israel’s Upcoming Elections has 34 Parties Make Knesset Bid
2009-02-20 12:11:37
 Thirty-four parties have submitted their final lists to elections officials and will run for Knesset in the February elections.  In the most recent elections, 31 parties vied for the 120 Knesset seats.  The United Torah Judaism (UTJ) party and HaTikva-National Union submitted their lists shortly before the deadline.  Both parties had conducted last minute internal negotiations to unite various factions - UTJ reached a deal keeping the Degel HaTorah and Agudat Yisrael factions under one roof, while HaTikva-NU united the HaTikva party with the Jewish Front party and the Tekuma and Moledet factions of the NU.  The Likud ...More»

Israeli Exports Down 20% in Fourth Quarter
2009-02-20 12:10:48
 Israeli Exports Down 20% in Fourth Quarter Despite the global slowdown, Israeli exports are expected to grow by 10% in 2008 to $78 billion, the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute announced on 29 December.  The Export Institute added that exports of goods grew by 24% in H1/08, driven by chemicals and fertilizers, whose prices rose sharply.  However, export growth slowed to 7% in H2/08.  Exports are expected to be 20% lower in Q4/08 than in Q4/07 because of the sharp drop in prices for raw materials and a 40% plunge in diamond exports.  The US accounted for 33% of Israeli exports in 2008, down from 3 ...More»

Economy - Investments
2009-02-20 12:09:40
http://www.chamber.org.il/ContentsList.aspx?type=1&cat=953&mn=40 ...More»

Israeli service providers
2009-02-20 12:08:35
http://www.chamber.org.il/ContentsList.aspx?type=1&cat=950&mn=41 ...More»

Israeli Export offers
2009-02-20 12:07:13
http://www.chamber.org.il/ContentsList.aspx?type=1&cat=948&mn=41 ...More»

Israeli import requests
2009-02-20 12:04:20
  Looking for distributors/importers of skin care products from the Dead Sea -417 Dead Sea Cosmetics Research Ltd. is an international company, developing, manufacturing and marketing exclusive skin care products. The company is looking for Importers/distributors that will present and sell their -417 products to the local market. The company aims to market  their products in department stores, spa centers, pharmacies, drug stores, beauty shops, specialty stores, etc. The Company supplies an exclusive amenities product line to leading hotels. Products VarietyTheir product line include more than 50 products such ...More»

Focus on - Foreign Trade
2009-02-20 12:01:41
Focus on … Foreign Trade   An Italian Institute for Foreign Trade and Italian industrial union convention was held in November in Tel Aviv, with the goal of strengthening commercial and industrial relations with Israel. During the convention, some 100 representatives of various Italian companies met with Israeli representatives to discuss cooperation and joint ventures. "In 2008, export from Italy to Israel rose by 10%, and import from Israel grew by 19%. There are still many options to increase this data," said Adolfo Urso, the deputy minister for economic development in Italy. Italian banking representatives also attended the conve ...More»

With 99 percent of votes counted, Kadima leads Likud 28 to 27 seats
2009-02-11 18:56:39
  By Haaretz Service With 99 percent of the votes counted, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni's Kadima Party is in first place with 28 of the Knesset's 120 seats, with Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party following closely behind with 27 seats. As the vote progresses, Labor stands at 13 seats, while Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beitenu party is expected to garner 15 seats. Exit polls by Israel's three main television stations on Tuesday night came to the same conclusion with Kadima as the leader and Likud coming a narrow second. Channel 1, Channel 2 and Channel 10 polling of voters as they left the ballot box all pointed ...More»

Doing Business in Israel
2009-02-02 14:57:25
Doing Business in Israel       The Israeli Consumer Law The Israeli Consumer law was adopted in 1981 and has since undergone many changes and revisions. Although the rights and wrongs regarding consumer issues must be clear to the public at large, the law is not quite clear in this respect and has rather confusing elements for the consumer.   An article by Advocate Shoshana Rabinowitz פרטים נוספים... Invest in Israel The resources, record and bus ...More»

Russian roulette with crude oil
2009-01-26 12:14:55
Russian roulette with crude oil By Ami Ginsburg ...More»

Hapoalim to finance Makhteshim power plant
2009-01-26 12:14:21
Hapoalim to finance Makhteshim power plant By Avi Bar-Eli ...More»

Bottom Shekel / The future of bank stocks
2009-01-26 12:13:36
Bottom Shekel / The future of bank stocks By Eytan Avriel ...More»

Market Report / TASE shows small gains in anticipation of big interest rate cut
2009-01-26 12:12:54
Market Report / TASE shows small gains in anticipation of big interest rate cut ...More»

December job losses hit 20-year high
2009-01-26 12:12:09
December job losses hit 20-year high By Haim Bior ...More»

Bank of Israel: A recession in 2009
2009-01-26 12:11:07
Bank of Israel: A recession in 2009 By Moti Bassok ...More»

letter received from Mr. Uriel Lynn, President of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce, regarding the current situation.
2009-01-05 15:05:07
  January 5, 2009 Dear Economic/Commercial Counselor, As of Saturday, December 28th, the State of Israel has been engaged in a military conflict with the Hammas organization in the Gaza strip which became inevitable as result of the rockets launched at civilians in Israel.  This development has been affecting the southern part of the country and its population. The business activity in Israel has been continuing without disruption.  All ports and trade facilities have been functioning as usual and all business transactions and flow of goods in and out of the country have been executed as planned. The Israeli econom ...More»

Economic Highlights
2008-11-30 17:04:01
November 23, 2008 The International Affairs Department, Ministry of Finance, Israel Dear Friend, Once again we are distributing our "Economic Highlights". For an update on recent developments in Israel's economy, please review the document available here.   To review the PowerPoint presentation, please click here. Your comments would be greatly appreciated at FinanceIsrael@mof.gov.il Warm Regards, Ravit Friedberg. ...More»

The Bank of Israel reduces the interest rate for December 2008 by 50 basis points to 2.5 percent
2008-11-30 16:54:53
Dr Stanley Fisher, Governor on the Bank of Israel, reduced the prime interest rate for December 2008 by 50 basic points to 2.5 percent and shown below is the full text: QUOTE  The Bank of Israel reduces the interest rate for December 2008 by 50 basis points to 2.5 percent     The Bank of Israel announces that the interest rate for December 2008 will be reduced by 50 basis points, to 2.5 percent.  Background conditions Inflation data: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 0.1 percent in October, slightly below the average forecast of 0.2 percent. In the last twelve months the CPI has risen by 5.5 percent. Th ...More»

Israel Economy
2008-11-09 12:11:31
economy   The Prime Minister’s Conference for Export and International Cooperation 2008The Prime Minister’s Conference for Export and International Cooperation to be held in Jerusalem on November 12th, 2008 (Satellites Conferences/Activities on November 11 & 13) will be Israel’s National Conference to mark 60 years of Independence and Economic Achievements.   Israel leads OECD in R&DIn fixed prices, Israel's expenditure on civilian R&D rose by 7.2% in 2007, over the year before, after rising by 3.3% in 2006 and 4.5% in 2005.The Central Bureau of Statistics reported last week ...More»

Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter - November 2008
2008-11-06 12:14:57
            Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter - November 2008Welcome to the November 2008 issue of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter. We are pleased to keep you informed, advised, and up to date about developments in Israel's fast-paced business community. We hope you find the information interesting and useful!     News > Highlights     Focus on … Air Travel...2008During September 2008, 1.07 million passengers passed through Ben Gurion International Airport, 9.3% more than in the correspondin ...More»

Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter - November 2008
2008-11-06 12:14:47
            Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter - November 2008Welcome to the November 2008 issue of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter. We are pleased to keep you informed, advised, and up to date about developments in Israel's fast-paced business community. We hope you find the information interesting and useful!     News > Highlights     Focus on … Air Travel...2008During September 2008, 1.07 million passengers passed through Ben Gurion International Airport, 9.3% more than in the correspondin ...More»

The Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce
2008-11-06 11:52:57
http://www.chamber.org.il/ ...More»

Currency Converter
2008-11-06 11:48:43
http://www.xe.com/ucc/ ...More»

The Bank of Israel
2008-11-06 11:46:15
www.bankisrael.gov.il ...More»

Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics
2008-11-06 11:45:39
www.cbs.gov.il ...More»

The "business" section of "Ha'aretz in English"
2008-11-06 11:45:00
www.haaretz.com; ...More»

Economic & Financial Review - Bank Hapoalim
2008-11-06 11:43:50
www.hapoalim.co.il ...More»

Israel Export & international Cooperation Institute
2008-11-06 11:32:08
www.export.gov.il ...More»

Exhibitions in Israel 2008-2009
2008-11-04 17:04:40
Diarise these upcoming conferences and exhibitions   November 2008 | Tel Aviv - Israel Pharmex - Pharmacy Exhibition and Conference   4Nov-06Nov2008 | Tel Aviv - Israel Technology Information - Telecom Israel - Telecommunications and Information Technologies Exhibition   5Nov-06Nov2008 | Latrun - Israel Army & Defence - Operational Decision in Army Warfare - Conference and Exhibition   24Nov-26Nov2008 | Tel Aviv - Israel HOTEX - International Exhibition for Hotel Management, Restaurants, Bars, Food Display, Marketing, Catering Institutions and Large Building Maintenance   24Nov-26Nov2008 | Tel Aviv - ...More»

Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter - October 2008
2008-11-04 16:48:15
Welcome to the October 2008 issue of the Federation of Israeli Chambers of Commerce Newsletter. We are pleased to keep you informed, advised, and up to date about developments in Israel's fast-paced business community. We hope you find the information interesting and useful!    Commerce and Industry -  Food & Beverages  Feature article … Israeli wines: Coming into Their Own Once upon a time, the words wine and Israel conjured up red, syrupy, sugary concoctions. But those days — and those wines — are a thing of the past. An innovator in high tech, biotech, and electronics has come to define Israel in recent yea ...More»