Reports of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s killing led to an immediate strengthening of the Israeli shekel against foreign currencies on Thursday evening.
Two days after a negative inflation report reduced the likelihood of the Bank of Israel raising interest rates, the shekel gained strength without any rate hike.
The dollar dropped by nearly 0.75% in after-hours trading, settling at around 3.73 shekels compared to the earlier official exchange rate of 3.7630 set before the Sukkot holiday, which had seen a 0.4% increase.
Against the euro, the shekel strengthened even further, rising by approximately 1.4% to trade at around 4.03 shekels, compared to the official rate of 4.0956 shekels set before the holiday, which had seen a 0.2% increase.
The shekel's rise follows news that IDF forces killed three terrorists in Gaza during a surprise encounter, including Sinwar, the leader of Hamas.