The Bank of Israel, as it announced on May 13, 2013, will purchase foreign exchange in coming years in line with the estimated effect of natural gas production on the balance of payments. The Bank’s assessments of the total impact on the balance of payments resulting from natural gas production and the foreign exchange purchases will be updated periodically and reported to the public.

The Bank of Israel projects that the overall effect of natural gas production on the balance of payments in 2017 will be $1.5 billion, and it will purchase foreign currency during 2017 accordingly. The projection was affected by, among other factors, the drop in global energy prices, which decreases the effect of natural gas production in Israel on the exchange rate.

This purchase program is an additional instrument of the Bank of Israel’s monetary policy and of exchange rate policy which is consistent with it. The Bank of Israel will continue to operate in the foreign exchange market in situations of exchange rate fluctuations which are not in line with fundamental economic conditions or when the foreign exchange market is disorderly.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)