Israel Q4 GDP revised to 21% contraction as a result of Gaza war

Shoppers in Hacarmel market on the day after a drone and missile attack from Iran, in Tel Aviv, Israel on Sunday, April 14, 2024 [Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg via Getty Images]

Israel’s war on Gaza took a larger toll on economic growth in the final three months of 2023 than previously thought, according to Reuters.

The economy contracted an annualised 21.0 per cent in the fourth quarter over the third quarter, the Central Bureau of Statistics said today in its third estimate. It followed a 19.4 per cent decline in its preliminary estimate that was revised to a 20.7 per cent contraction last month.

The war has raged since early October and led to steep declines in the fourth quarter in exports (-22.5 per cent), private spending (-26.9 per cent), investment in fixed assets (-67.9 per cent) and imports (-42.4 per cent).

Government spending, though, jumped 83.7 per cent.

On Monday the bureau reported that the annual inflation rate rose to a more than expected 2.7 per cent in March from 2.5 per cent in February.

READ: Gaza war estimated to cost Israel $48bn

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