ISRAEL
Analyst
Sani Ziv
UN Economic ConsultantRecent Country Insights
IMF raises Israel's 2026 growth forecast to 4.5%
ISRAEL · In Brief · 13 Oct 2026
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised its growth forecast for Israel to 4.5% in 2026, up from 3.5% previously. The upward revision appears reasonable given the strong rebound in GDP in the second quarter, where the economy expanded by 15.9% annualized, and given positive economic indic...
Weekly Report - October 12, 2026: Two weeks until the elections, September CPI in focus, fiscal deficit remains low
ISRAEL · Report · 13 Oct 2026
Last week's economic releases provided further evidence that the Israeli economy continues to expand at a relatively solid pace. The most encouraging developments were the rebound in credit-card spending, the improvement in current business conditions and continued strength in imports. The fiscal...
Political update – October 9, 2026: Electoral deadlock and the road to a new government
ISRAEL · Report · 09 Oct 2026
With three weeks to go, our weekly average of polls from Israel’s three main television channels (Kan 11, Channel 12 and Channel 13) shows the two blocs remain tied at around 52 seats each. Since August, Eisenkot’s bloc has fallen from around 59 seats to 52 seats while Netanyahu’s bloc has remain...
Weekly Report - October 5, 2026: Fuel-tax cut lowers near-term inflation; BoI set to pause; Israeli bonds outperform; election race remains tight
ISRAEL · Report · 05 Oct 2026
Israel returned from the holiday period with financial markets and the economic data calendar moving back toward normal activity. The main macro development during the holiday period was the Finance Minister's decision to largely offset the latest increase in gasoline prices through an additional...
Weekly Report - September 28, 2026: Growth moderates; wider Israel-US rate gap weighs on the shekel; Supreme Court review on Thursday
ISRAEL · Report · 28 Sep 2026
Activity data suggest that the economy continued to expand at the start of Q3, although at a more moderate pace, while strong credit growth points to continued resilience. Israeli high-tech fundraising also remained strong in Q3, reaching USD 3.6bn and reinforcing continued capital inflows. With ...
Political update – September 25, 2026: Eisenkot bloc stabilizes, Arab parties disqualified ahead of Supreme Court review, and do polls underestimate Likud?
ISRAEL · Report · 25 Sep 2026 · 1 response
Recent polls suggest that Eisenkot’s bloc is stabilizing, but the post-election arithmetic remains complicated, with several possible coalition scenarios discussed in this report. The disqualification of Ra’am and the Joint List now moves to the Supreme Court, which has overturned similar decisio...
Weekly Report - September 22, 2026: Benign inflation, resilient activity and a weaker external balance; a short week ahead with focus on labor-market data
ISRAEL · Report · 22 Sep 2026
The shortened week between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur was dominated by the August CPI and balance-of-payments data. Inflation remained relatively benign, while the current account moved into deficit for the second consecutive quarter despite a large goods and services surplus. Economic activity...
Political update– September 18, 2026: Netanyahu bloc improves, but no clear path to 61
ISRAEL · Report · 18 Sep 2026
Recent polls show a modest improvement in Netanyahu’s bloc, but neither side currently has a clear path to a 61-seat majority. The shift reflects both a more efficient distribution of votes within the right-wing bloc and some movement at the margins between the two blocs. Winter appears to be att...
Israel’s H1 current account deficit and a technical note on Nvidia and BOP accounting
ISRAEL · In Brief · 17 Sep 2026
Balance of payments data released yesterday showed a USD 0.5bn current account deficit in Q2, following a revised deficit of around USD 0.8bn in Q1. This represents a significant change from 2025, when Israel recorded a current account surplus of around USD 8.9bn. The goods and services balance r...