Antitrust Authority director general Dror Strum said the socks market has been gradually exposed to competition from imports since the 1990s.
Antitrust Authority director general Dror Strum has approved the merger between Delta Socks and Taga Socks, the limited partnership owned by Kibbutz Hama'apil, which also manufactures socks. Under the merger, Taga Socks is selling its manufacturing and marketing activity to Delta Socks.
Strum said the socks market has been gradually exposed to competition from imports since the 1990s, leading to significantly lower prices, with the percentage of imports growing to over 50% of sales to the local market.
Imports also created an incentive for Israeli companies to develop innovative technologies, making them attractive to foreign brands, which transferred their sock manufacturing to Israeli plants. As a result, most socks manufactured in Israel are designated for export, while the Israeli consumer benefits from the lowered prices caused by competition.
Delta Socks is a subsidiary of Delta Galil Industries (Nasdaq: DELT).
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 9 August, 2001