ISRAEL
Analyst
Sani Ziv
UN Economic ConsultantRecent Country Insights
Business-sector survey signals acceleration in activity toward year-end
ISRAEL · In Brief · 07 Jan 2026
The latest Business Survey for December 2025, which provides the closest local proxy to a PMI and covers both the industrial and services sectors, points to a further acceleration in activity toward year-end. The net balance for current activity rose to 20.88 points from 19.68 in November, althou...
Macroeconomic and geopolitical developments – Weekly report, January 6, 2026
ISRAEL · Report · 06 Jan 2026
The year ends on a calmer note, with Israel’s macro-economic environment improving. Still, it is constrained by tight labor markets, and fiscal uncertainty exists. Domestic demand indicators point to solid fourth-quarter momentum, the shekel remains firm, and risk premia have continued to decline...
Bank of Israel cuts rates for a second time, signals a dovish stance; 2026 growth forecast revised higher
ISRAEL · In Brief · 05 Jan 2026
Contrary to market expectations, the Bank of Israel surprised with a second consecutive rate cut. As we noted yesterday, the prevailing macroeconomic conditions supported further easing, leaving little justification for keeping rates at their current level. The policy statement conveyed a more do...
Interest rate review: Bank of Israel seen holding rates tomorrow, despite our view that there is room for further easing
ISRAEL · In Brief · 04 Jan 2026
The Bank of Israel is scheduled to announce its monetary-policy decision for February tomorrow. The near-market consensus is that the policy rate will remain unchanged, reflecting the Bank of Israel’s concerns over a still-tight labor market (with unemployment at around 3%), the risk of pent-up d...
Gasoline price to drop 3.3% on January 1st, supporting continued monetary easing
ISRAEL · In Brief · 30 Dec 2025
Starting January 1st, the price of gasoline in Israel will be reduced to NIS 6.85 per liter. The decline reflects a 10.76% drop in global oil prices and a 2.26% appreciation in the shekel-dollar exchange rate. The 3.66% decline in fuel prices points to a particularly low CPI reading in January, i...
Government advances political inquiry into October 7 as families demand state commission
ISRAEL · In Brief · 22 Dec 2025
Israel’s Ministerial Committee for Legislation approved on Monday a proposed law by MK Ariel Kallner (Likud), backed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to establish a political, non-state commission of inquiry into the failures surrounding the October 7 attack and the ensuing war. Under the pr...
Macroeconomic and geopolitical developments – Weekly report, December 22, 2025
ISRAEL · Report · 22 Dec 2025
Data released over the past week support the view that Israel’s economy is transitioning to a more stable growth phase, with activity expanding at an above-trend pace. Inflation surprised to the downside, easing to 2.4% in November, with underlying measures such as services inflation pointing to ...
Labor market remains tight despite post-war normalization
ISRAEL · In Brief · 17 Dec 2025
Labor market remains tight despite post-war normalization Labor-market indicators continue to point to a tight labor market that may sustain wage pressures and slow the pace of interest-rate cuts, even after the ceasefire. Two new releases this week suggest that labor demand remains strong, while...
November CPI surprises slightly to the downside, inflation eases to 2.4%
ISRAEL · In Brief · 16 Dec 2025
Israel’s consumer price index, published yesterday, surprised slightly to the downside, falling by 0.5% in November, compared with our forecast of a 0.4% decline and a 0.3% decline in the consensus forecast. As a result, annual inflation eased to 2.4%, its lowest level since November 2021. The de...