Financial analysts said the Israeli shekel could be the best currency for investment in 2023, according to a report published this week on Bloomberg news site.
The rosy prognosis contradicts dire predictions of recession and economic shrinkage that could result from a controversial judicial reform being passed.
The report comes as several sectors of Israeli society have joined in weekly protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's plans to limit the High Court's ability to rule against the legislature and the executive, while giving lawmakers decisive powers in appointing judges. The protests have had a predictably adverse effect on Israel's standing in financial markets.
Geoffrey Yu, currency and macro strategist at BNY Mellon in London, and Peter Kisler, London-based hedge fund manager at Trium Capital, along with several other analysts, told Bloomberg that the current downtrend in the shekel should not last long. According to them, the shekel was the only currency in the world to strengthen its standing against the dollar over the past decade.
The financial news agency estimates that the financial and economic context has long been favorable to the appreciation of the Israeli currency, due in particular to the current account surplus, investments in high-tech and natural gas exports, which are expected to increase as the amount of gas purchased by European countries from Russia decreases.
“We do not see a paradigm shift at present,” said Yu. “For the first time in nearly two years, our clients are flat the shekel and there is scope for further gains or purchases up ahead.”
According to another economist cited in the report, Henrik Gullberg, the shekel has been “so out of whack with traditional drivers” that its trajectory may withstand political tensions.
Reprinted with permission from i24NEWS