The shekel is strengthening today against the dollar and against the euro after the Bank of Israel yesterday decided to keep the interest rate unchanged, as expected, and raise the growth forecast for 2016 and 2017. The growth forecast for 2016 was raised from 2.4% to 2.8% and the growth forecast for 2017 was raised from 2.9% to 3.1%.
In early afternoon inter-bank trading, the shekel was down 0.45% against the dollar from yesterday's representative rate at NIS 3.748/$, and was down 0.5% against the euro at NIS 4.212/€.
Yesterday, the Bank of Israel set the shekel-dollar representative rate up 0.133% today compared with Friday's rate at NIS 3.765/$, and the representative shekel-euro rate was set up 0.427% at NIS 4.234/€.
FXCM Israel said in its morning survey, "The shekel-dollar exchange rate continues to fall below the key NIS 3.75/$ level. Even though the Bank of Israel left the interest rate unchanged, the shekel got wind in its sails when the growth forecast for 2016 and 2017 was raised. Falling below NIS 3.75/$ is likely the take the shekel-dollar exchange rate to the September low of NIS 3.74/$ - the rate at which the Bank of Israel intervened."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on September 27, 2016
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