ECONOMY

The fiscal deficit narrowed in the twelve months to the end of April 2025, to 5.1% of GDP, or NIS 104.7 billion, the Ministry of Finance accountant general reports.

The Trump administration plans to replace the restrictions with bilateral agreements, but sees Israel as low priority.

As the Israeli army drafts reservists for an expanded operation in Gaza, the cabinet has approved incentives worth NIS 3.4 billion for reservists called up for combat duty.

The credit rating agency notes the strengths of Israel's economy, but sees current geopolitical risks as decisive.

The Israeli pharmaceutical company's 3,000 layoffs will help the company achieve its targets for growth and higher profitability.

Israel’s foreign exchange reserves at the end of April 2025 rose to $222.035 billion, an increase of $3.224 billion from their level at the end of March, the Bank of Israel reports.

The funds, State Comptroller Matanyahu Englman finds, are used for purposes other than their original aims, sometimes as a small cash reserve to plug holes in the budget.

Food price rises in Israel are outstripping wage rises and food price hikes in other OECD countries.

As the IDF drafts tens of thousands of reservists, the consequence could be higher taxes, more civilian spending cuts, and a wider deficit.

The population has grown by 1.4% or 135,000 since last Independence Day.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, this was the largest jump in Israel's military expenditure since the Six Day War of 1967.

The plan is to include advanced training funds in a more general reform designed to equalize taxation for various savings programs.

The government wants to cancel the bill as part of the war on Hamas, which is sitting on a mountain of Israeli cash, but the Bank of Israel is opposed.

Industry experts agree that Intel staff dismissed in Israel will have no trouble finding work at rivals like Nvidia, as happened during last year's layoffs.

Amid the uncertainty that still surrounds the level of tariffs that would ultimately be imposed on Israeli goods, the annual damage to growth is estimated by the Finance Ministry at less than 0.5% of GDP.

"Bloomberg" reports that new CEO Lip-Bu Tan will announce the layoffs this week.

Two delegations will fly to Washington for talks on the matter with proposals including cutting bureaucracy for US imports.

The March reading brings annual inflation in Israel down to 3.3% from 3.4% at the end of February.

With thousands of tech employees leaving Israel, the Innovation Authority proposes measures that could reverse the trend.

Tel Aviv's position as one of the world's wealthiest cities took a big knock over the past year as it slipped from 42nd to 48th in investment advisors Henley & Co.'s "World's Wealthiest Cities" Top 50 ranking.

The Dayan committee on the future of the gas sector estimates that Israel's natural gas reserves will run out in 2045.

The deficit narrowed in the twelve months to the end of March 2025, for the sixth consecutive month, Ministry of Finance accountant general Yali Rothenberg reported today.

Prof. Amir Yaron tells "Globes" that there is a risk that the new tariffs will cause inflation to rise in the US, with a knock-on effect for Israel.

Asked by reporters whether Israel would be exempted from his tariffs policy, US President Donald Trump replied, "Maybe not. Don’t forget we help Israel a lot."

Israel’s foreign exchange reserves at the end of March 2025 fell to $218.821 billion, a decrease of $1.433 billion from their level at the end of February, the Bank of Israel reports.

The Bank of Israel is concerned about inflation, the escalation of the war in Gaza, which has raised Israel's risk premium, and the turmoil on global markets set off by the trade war.

Amid increased relocation, Israel's tech workforce has contracted for the first time in over a decade, the Israel Innovation Authority reports.

Even if Israel obtains relief from the tariff imposed on it by US President Trump, it will feel the global effects of the trade war, analysts say.

The shekel weakened significantly against both the US dollar and the euro at the opening of foreign exchange trading today.

According to news website Axios, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will be the first leader to meet President Trump after the latter's announcement of sweeping import tariffs.

Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich tried to persuade Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent to soften the tariff blow on Israel - only Bessent isn't responsible for the matter.