The shekel is strengthening today against the dollar and stable against the euro. In early afternoon inter-bank trading, the shekel-dollar exchange rate is down 0.27% against the dollar at NIS 3.602/$ and up 0.06% against the euro at 4.067/€.
Yesterday, the Bank of Israel set the shekel-dollar representative rate down 0.578% today at NIS 3.612/$ from Monday's rate, and set the shekel-euro rate up 0.076% at 4.065/€.
The dollar has fallen further against the world's major currencies after the US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell yesterday hinted that the Fed is likely to cut the interest rate at its next meeting to help US growth. Powell said, "We will act as appropriate to sustain the expansion."
Meanwhile in Israel, market sources believe the possibility of a US rate cut makes the possibility of an Israeli rate hike at the Bank of Israel's next meeting much less likely.
Harel Insurance Investments and Financial Services Ltd. (TASE: HARL) head of economics and research Ofer Klein said, "The black clouds around world trade is making the central banks begin to take action. In our opinion, this very much reduces the chances that we will seek an interest rate hike in Israel."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on June 5, 2019
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