The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TASE) opened the week with stocks falling sharply in reaction to developments in northern Israel. The drop follows the steep falls on TASE in the last two sessions of last week. Today’s opening was affected by the reports of Katyusha rocket attacks on Haifa, Kiryat Bialik and Nahariya.
The economic impact of the attacks is substantial, since most businesses in northern Israel will be closed today, at the order of the IDF Homefront Command. In addition, the attacks will probably affect the state budget framework, which Minister of Finance Avraham Hirchson said on Friday would not be breached.
On Friday, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for June was published. The index rose 0.1%. Most predictions were for no change in the index. The inflation rate is now 3%, at the upper limit of the government and Bank of Israel’s price stability target.
In the markets, on Friday, a US Federal Court judge ruled that Forest Laboratories Inc.’s (NYSE:FRX) patent for its blockbuster anti-depressant Lexapro was still valid. The ruling means that Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (Nasdaq: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) will not be able to market a generic version of the drug, which the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already approved for marketing.
After trading on Thursday, Israel’s second largest insurance company, Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd. (TASE: CLIS) published a profit warning for the second quarter, following a similar profit warning by Israel’s largest insurance company, Migdal Insurance and Financial Holdings Ltd. (TASE: MGDL), published before trading began.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on July 16, 2006
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