Shekel continues to gain ground

Shekels Photo: Shutterstock
Shekels Photo: Shutterstock

Although the dollar is appreciating worldwide, the Israeli currency continues to strengthen.

The shekel is again strengthening today against the dollar and against the euro. In late morning inter-bank trading, the shekel was down 0.28% against the dollar from yesterday's representative rate at NIS 3.828/$, and down 0.45% against the euro at NIS 4.062/€ - a 14 year low.

Yesterday, the Bank of Israel set the shekel-dollar representative rate down 0.234% compared with Tuesday's rate at NIS 3.839/$, and the representative shekel-euro rate was set up 0.110% at NIS 4.081/€.

FXCM Israel said in its morning survey, "The shekel-dollar exchange rate has stabilized somewhat around the NIS 3.83/$ mark despite the strengthening of the dollar worldwide after publication of positive US macroeconomic data - good GDP and employment figures, which saw the dollar strengthen against the euro and hit a 8.5 month high against the yen. These better than expected figures have only strengthened the belief that the US Fed will raise interest rates at its meeting later this month. The sharp rise in oil prices following the OPEC agreement to limit production also supports the dollar. Rising oil prices will fuel inflation, which reinforces the expectation that the Fed will need to raise interest rates in 2017 faster than planned. Rising back above NIS 3.85/$ would restore the upward momentum in the shekel-dollar exchange rate."

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 1, 2016

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016

Shekels Photo: Shutterstock
Shekels Photo: Shutterstock
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