ECONOMIC INFORMATION

Population: 6.7m

Population growth: 1.84%

Population density (people per sq. km): 324

UN Human Development Index ranking: 22/177

Gross national income (current US$): $105.2bn (2002)

Gross national income per capita: $16,020

PPP Gross national income: $128.4bn

PPP Gross national income per capita: $19,200

GDP growth: -0.8% (2003)

GDP breakdown Agriculture: 2.8%, Industry: 37.7%, Services: 59.5%

Inflation (12-month average): 0.2 (2003)

Gross capital formation as % of GDP: 16.1%

Final consumption expenditure as % of GDP (growth): 90.7% (0.9%)

Exports of goods & services as % of GDP: 37.3%

Top 3 export markets: US, Benelux, Hong Kong

Local industries: High-technology projects (including aviation, communications, computer-aided design & manufactures, medical electronics), wood & paper products, potash & phosphates, food, beverages, tobacco, caustic soda, cement, diamond cutting

WEF Growth Competitiveness ranking *: 19/104

WEF Business Competitiveness ranking **: 21/103

WEF Quality of the Business Environment ranking: 21/103

Transparency International Corruption Perceptions ranking: 26/145

Languages : Hebrew (official), English and Arabic

FDI INFORMATION

Region: Levant

No. of projects (Jan-Sep 2004): 27

Market-share of projects in the region: 14.5%

Value of projects relative to GDP: 23.9%

Top 3 destination sectors: IT & software, textiles, financial services

Top 3 business functions: Manufacturing, sales marketing & support, retail

Top 3 source countries: US, Switzerland, Italy

Top 3 investors: Zorlu Holdings, Serono, Hewlett Packard

IPA

Name: Ministry of Industry and Trade Investment Promotion Centre

Web address: www.moit.gov.il

* World Economic Forum Growth Competitiveness Ranking assesses an economy’s ability to grow consistently

** World Economic Forum Business Competitiveness Ranking assesses the microeconomic factors that contribute to economic growth

*** The difficulty of hiring workers and the difficulty and expense of firing workers is reflected as an index where the higher the value the more rigid the regulations