ECONOMY

During his visit to Israel this week, Jamie Dimon CEO of JPMorganChase, the biggest bank in the US, met for lunch with Israeli tech leaders at the home of Eyal Waldman.

There is major concern that the government’s economic policies could lead to a further cut in Israel’s credit rating.

Researchers Sani Ziv and Oren Shapir of the Aharon Institute for Economic Policy recommend long-term integrated housing and transport planning.

The ministry's spend on infrastructure development is stuck at about NIS 20 billion annually, far below what is needed to close Israel's productivity gap.

The raw numbers can always be harnessed to a political narrative.

The Israeli business systems company is preparing for another major round of layoffs in which an estimated 5%-10% of the company’s workforce will be laid off.

According to the Ministry of Finance, every 1,000 haredim who are conscripted for combat service will lead to a saving of 833,000 combat reserve days per year.

Inflation remains within the Bank of Israel's annual target range, the Central Bureau of Statistics reports.

Assuming that the sale of the company to Google goes ahead at the price reported, experts put the tax payable in Israel at at least $2.5 billion.

Netanyahu and Simhon believe that their plan to offer additional tax benefits on the distribution of dividends from trapped earnings could replace the revenue from the VAT tax hike.

Two programs cut by the Ministry of Economy and Industry include subsidizing the cost of wages for haredi, Arab and Druze employees in businesses in Israel amounting to NIS 43 million.

Israel was ranked 18th in the UBS Global Wealth Report, with average wealth of $260,000 per adult last year.

Speaking at the Aaron Institute for Economic Policy conference, Viola Group founder Dovrat said Israel was not keeping pace on AI, and that critical elements for economic growth were lacking.

A new study attempts to give an accurate picture of the gaps between different sectors of Israeli society in taxation and public services.

Prof. Amir Yaron added that despite the war, the Israeli economy continues to display resilience in dealing with the challenges of the period.

The Bank of Israel has announced that it has kept the interest rate unchanged at 4.5%, and cut the growth forecast due to uncertainty around the war.

During the Globes Family Companies Conference, a panel discussion was held on the planning and management of continuity for family businesses.

The fiscal deficit has reached 7.6% of GDP over the past 12 months, the Ministry of Finance accountant general Yali Rothenberg reports.

Emigration is notoriously difficult to measure, and different Israeli agencies come up with different figures.

Israel's cabinet today approved a 1% across-the board budget cut for all government ministries, except the Ministry of Defense.

Jeff Melanson, an expert on innovation and a consultant to family businesses at US consulting firm LGA told the "Globes" Family Companies Conference that family businesses cannot rely on the past and must innovate for the future.

Vehicles worth some NIS 250 million manufactured in Turkey were delivered in Israel in May-June.

Initial estimates for May 2024 show that the average wage rose by 7.8% compared with May 2023, to NIS 12,891.

The weak shekel, the rise in Israel's risk premium, expansionary fiscal policy and geopolitical uncertainty all make a Bank of Israel rate cut unlikely on Monday.

The "Start-Up Nation" co-author tells "Globes" about unprecedented antisemitism in the US and his belief that Israeli tech will come through the war stronger.

Independent research organization Rise finds worrying trends behind the upsurge in investment in privately-held Israel companies.

In a PayPal-Rushinek survey, 50% of small and medium-sized businesses in Israel said that overseas online sales had enabled them to financially survive the current period.

An amendment to the Consumer Protection Law empowers the regulator to halt credit clearance for businesses that swindle the elderly, new immigrants, and the disabled.

The Jerusalem-based company is changing its business focus to generative AI at the expense of some of its app operations.

Aspiring to Harvard, Stanford and the like was natural for Jewish students, but many are now considering lower-ranked campuses less tolerant of antisemitism - or even Israel.

Jeff Melanson, of US consultancy LGA, and the keynote speaker at the "Globes" Family Companies Conference, talks about resistance to change, and the likes of The New York Times and Nintendo that embraced it.