Tirah : Ports Strikes forced 8% of companies to move overseas

Manufacturers Association president Mr.Oded Tirah said last week that study conducted among 120 leading industrialists showed that 8% of industrial companies had already moved their operations overseas due to strikes, and that 25% were in the process of planning to do so.
 
Tirah said that economic forecasts for 2004's fourth quarter indicated a sharp decline in the "optimism index" and a freeze in foreign investment, despite rises on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Tirah based his figures on the findings of a recent survey of the forum of executives in industry. The survey found that the optimism index was 3.44 for the fourth quarter of the year, compared with 3.71 in the third (on a range of 1-5). Nevertheless, most forum members expected increased activity in most indicators.
 
The Manufacturers Association also predicted that the Euro-Shekel exchange rate will be NIS 5.337/€. And the Dollar-Shekel exchange rate will be NIS 4.573/$ at the end of the year. Predictions for the export of goods and services are less optimistic than in the first three quarters of the year. 66% of respondents predict an increase in exports, 27% predict no change, and 7% predict a slight decline.
 
Expectations for growth are more moderate than in the third quarter. 60% of the respondents predict a further rise in GDP, compared with 82% in the third quarter; 33% expect no change; and 7% predict a slight drop.
 
69% of the respondents predict an increase in industrial output, with most predicting only a slight increase; 26% expect no change, and 5% predict a slight decline. 60% of the respondents predicted that the US economy will grow moderately in the fourth quarter, along with a slight increase in European economy.