Shekel gains against dollar for fifth straight session

• Date: 08 April 2021
• Published date: 08 April 2021
• Publication title: Globes (Rishon LeZion, Israel)

Yesterday, the Bank of Israel set the representative shekel-dollar rate down 0.302% from Tuesday, at NIS 3.299/$, and the representative shekel-euro rate was set 0.440% up, at NIS 3.925/€.

The shekel has been gaining against the dollar for the past week. As the US prints more money for President Biden's stimulus package the dollar has weakened against the world's major currencies. However, today the dollar is slightly stronger worldwide but not as strong as the shekel.

Yesterday the Bank of Israel revealed that it bought $2 billion in foreign currency in March in efforts to temper the strengthening of the shekel, bringing its first quarter foreign currency purchases to a massive $13.7 billion. This is nearly half of the planned $30 billion purchasing program announced in January, although Governor Prof. Amir Yaron has since clarified that the program may exceed $30 billion.

Earlier in the week the IMF raised Israel's growth forecast to 5% in 2021 from...