Analyst: economic damage caused by Israel coalition will take years to repair

The downgrading of Israel’s credit rating from positive to stable is unsurprising considering the manoeuvres of the coalition government, an economic analyst said yesterday, adding that it will take Tel Aviv years to recover from this.

Professor of economics at Israel’s Reichman University, Omer Moav,  said: “It is not unlike what anyone familiar with economic research would say, and it is in line with the consensus among 300 leading economists in Israel.”

He noted that both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich had denied the negative effects of the judicial overhaul plan, adding that “their message is meaningless and full of deception and confusion.”

“There is irreparable damage here, even on an immediate economic level. These are irreversible or it will take decades to repair the damage. They’ve already done that,” he said.

“Research shows that when a society is divided and there is no trust in it, its economy suffers in the long run.”

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