The Bank of Israel's Composite State of the Economy Index increased by 0.3% in January 2015.
The Index was positively impacted on by an increase in trade and services revenue, in goods exports, and by a continued increase in the job vacancy rate. The Index’s rate of increase in January was moderated by declines in consumer goods imports, imports of manufacturing inputs, and services exports.
The Index’s growth rate has been accelerated beginning in August 2014. The increase in the growth rate of business sector product in the fourth quarter of 2014 led to an upward revision in the Index’s rate of increase in previous months and to the acceleration in the rate of increase due to the positive effect of the growth rate on the trend component of the Index.
The acceleration in the growth rate and its positive effect on the trend component are not expected to persist, because the fourth quarter growth rate was atypical and largely reflected the economy’s recovery from Operation Protective Edge as well as the sharp increase in vehicle purchases that derived from taxation changes.
