Economic Analysis/Isarel
"X Balfour Doctrine of 1917- British government's support of a creation of a Jewish state in Palestine"X After WWI, Jewish immigration increased along with violence between the Jewish and Arab communities"X Britain attempted to slow the immigration, but was met with international resistance due to widespread support for Jewish national aspirations after the near genocide by the Nazis in WWII"X United Nations proposed a partition plan in 1947, dividing Palestine into separate Jewish and Arab states"X On May 14, 1948, State of Israel was proclaimed and instantly invaded by armies from the neighboring Arab states who rejected the partition plan"X War of Independence concluded in 1949 with armistice agreements between Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria"X Population: 6,199,008 (7/02 estimate)"X Slightly smaller than New Jersey, 17.02% arable land and 4.17% permanent crops"X Growth rate: 1.29% (7/04 estimate)"X High literacy rate: 95.4% of population over the age of 15 can read and write"X Official language: Hebrew and Arabic"X Legal system mixture of English common law, British
6 billion (2002) raw materials, diamonds, energy ships and airplanes, machinery, equipment, land transportation equipment for investment and consumer goods excluding defense imports"h Per capita GDP: $15,770 (market exchange rate, 2002) "h Free trade agreements with United States, EU, Turkey, Canada, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic "h Israel levies a 17% VAT on almost all products sold in Israel, with the exception of fresh fruits and vegetables"h Recovered by the importer upon resale, so ultimately responsibility of consumer"h Purchase tax on some luxury and consumer items"h TAMA system results in higher taxation on imported goodsWeek 4"h Balance of payments improved significantly in 2003. "h Only 3 foreign banks have received licenses to provide banking services in Israel: Citibank (US), HSBC (UK) and Australia and New Zealand Banking Corp. This growth was sidetracked in 2001 and continues to be for multiple reasons: weakness in the US and global economies, continued increase in political and military tension with the Arab and Palestinian neighbors and the decrease in tourism due to terrorism fear post 9-11. 8 billion (2002) polished diamonds, electronic communication, medical and scientific equipment, chemicals and chemical products, rubber, textiles and plastics"h Imports- $32. Since Israeli currency is not very stable, all prices on the housing market are set in US dollars. the dollar has caused an increase in the inflation rate, but it is rising from relatively low levels and the Bank of Israel is in a good position to keep it under control by raising interest rates. The US-led war on Iraq will have a negative effect on trade as Israeli relations with its neighbors become more and more strained. The high tech sector, which was the primary cause for growth in 2000, slowed dramatically and tourism was down 50% in 2001 from 2000. In 2000, Israel enjoyed more than a 7% growth in the economy after several years of less than stellar growth. While there has been some progress in attempting to turn the technologically oriented economy into a more open, competitive market, the government is preoccupied with security concerns. The Central Bureau of Statistics reported that the current account deficit in the balance of payments totaling $200 million in 2003, compared with $1. "h The Bank of Israel administers foreign currency control. Mandate regulations and Jewish, Christian and Muslim legal systems"X Executive branch"X President- chief of state, elected for 5 year term by the Knesset, largely ceremonial role"X Prime Minister- head of government, executive power, selected by President as the party leader most likely to forma government, selects Cabinet"X Legislative branch"X Unicameral Knesset (parliament) 120 seats, members elected by popular vote, serve 4 year terms, voting is for party lists rather than individual candidates, number of seats reflects the party's percentage of the vote received"X Judicial branch"X Supreme Court (justices appointed for life by President)"X Contains secular and religious courts"X Many aspects of Israeli life governed by religious law "X Most public transportation and national airline do not operate on Shabbat"X Businesses and government offices are closed from Friday afternoon till Sunday morning"X Kosher requirements for food restrict the importation and selling of certain foods and beverages"X Boycott of the Arab league"X 75 % of total assets held by 3 major banking groups "X Bank Hapoalim"X Bank Leumi"X Israel Discount Bank"X Central Bank"X Bank of Israel "X Monetary policy"X Economic advisor to the government"X Foreign currency activity"X Foreign exchange control"X Issuing coins and banknotes"X High standard of living"X Neither citizens or foreigners can own land "X Lease from State every 49 years "X Not every worker that earns an average wage can afford to live without roommates WEEK 3"h Technologically advanced market economy"h Substantial but decreasing government participation"h Despite limited natural resources, Israel has developed its agricultural and industrial sectors to high levels in the past 20 years"h Major industrial sectors include high-tech electronic and biomedical equipment, metal products, processed foods and chemicals"h World center for diamond cutting and polishing"h Exports- $25.
Common topics in this essay:
Israel Monetary,
Bank Israel,
Republic Israel,
Slightly Jersey,
Arab Palestinian,
Jewish Arab,
Unicameral Knesset,
Banking Corp,
President Contains,
Shabbat Businesses,
bank israel,
exchange rate,
jewish arab,
foreign currency,
partition plan,
industrial sectors,
balance payments,
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Acceptance Essays
