The Bank of Israel Monetary Committee, led by bank governor Professor Amir Yaron, decided to increase the interest rate by 0.4%.
The rate increased from 0.35% to 0.7%—a more aggressive move than anticipated—reported the Israeli business daily Globes on Monday.
“Inflation in Israel is exceeding the upper bound of the target range, at 4% over the past 12 months,” according to the Bank of Israel. “With that, it remains significantly lower than in most advanced economies. One-year inflation expectations are around the upper bound of the target range. Longer-term expectations remain anchored within the target range.”
It added that “the war in Ukraine and lockdowns in China are increasing inflationary pressure, and leading to a slowdown in the pace of global economic activity.”
According to the report, this is the first time in more than a decade that the Bank of Israel raised the interest rate in two consecutive months.
