- Title: ISRAEL: Israeli markets fall on re-opening after 3-day holiday
- Date: 3rd October 2008
- Summary: (MER1) TEL AVIV, ISRAEL (OCTOBER 2, 2008) (REUTERS) MAN WALKING INTO BANK CLOSE-UP OF SIGN READING IN ENGLISH: "FIRST INTERNATIONAL BANK OF ISRAEL" STOCK BROKERS WORKING IN TRADE CENTRE BROKER SITTING AT COMPUTER CLOSE-UP OF BROKER CLOSE-UP OF WORKER LOOKING AT SCREEN CLOSE-UP OF SCREEN SHOWING MARKET FIGURES BROKERS AT DESK VARIOUS OF COMPUTER SCREENS SHOWING TRADE INFOR
- Embargoed: 18th October 2008 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Israel
- Country: Israel
- Topics: Finance
- Reuters ID: LVA3SVZ98R1KU6WHAIY2OEUSTAKZ
- Story Text: Israeli shares and the shekel fell in value on Thursday (October 2) but trimmed their losses by early afternoon.
The stock market had been closed since Monday (September 29) for the Jewish New Year holiday and is only now reacting to the turbulence in global markets in recent days.
Dror Sacks, Chief Dealer at the First International Bank of Israel, said Israeli markets are only now reacting to the three-day turmoil that had shaken the world's markets during the past week.
"Well the Israeli market opened this morning after three days of holidays, lucky for us, we opened the market at minus three percent. The market is very bearish, seems like everybody is very very afraid," he said.
Sacks added that although Israel's economy maybe less affected by global events, it would still sustain some damage.
"Everything that happens in the world reflects also on the Israeli economy. Less powerful than others' economy but still of course we're invested in the U.S., as everybody else and we're going to get hit like everybody else, maybe less severe but still we're on the same side," he added.
Ordinary Israelis too expressed some concern amid the market's drop.
"Today, if you thought before about where you're going to invest the money, today you think maybe I should take the money and just put it under the tiles, you know? it will be safer there, no stock market, no anything. I think that's the main thing you think about because everything is falling, you're losing all your money," said Alisa Eshet, a resident of Tel Aviv who was out shopping in the city's Azrieli mall.
The U.S. Senate on Wednesday (October 1) voted in favour of a revised bailout package aimed at reinvigorating frozen worldwide credit markets and interbank lending.
The House of Representatives is expected to vote on the new bill on Friday (October 3) after its surprise rejection of an initial plan at the weekend, a move that shattered global markets.
On Thursday, the shekel was trading at 3.4850 per dollar, having traded as weak as 3.5150 in the morning, compared with an official rate of 3.4210 on Sept. 26, the last day the Bank of Israel set an official rate.
The euro hit a one-year low against the dollar, as the Senate's approval of the revised bill lifted the greenback. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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