| Popis: |
This paper evaluates the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on social and economic development of Israel. We begin with a short description of the state of affairs in Israel from social, economic and political points of view before the advent of pandemic. First, we analyze the role of ongoing Israeli political crisis in the current environment, describe leading political actors’ reaction and list some politically-destabilizing factors. We proceed with an analysis of COVID-19 impact on various economic branches and on Israeli economy as a whole. We provide estimates of adverse impact of the coronavirus on some important industries, such as tourism, energy, diamonds and air transport, supplemented by Bank of Israel economic forecast for post-crisis development. Additionally, we describe how high-tech sector as one of the drivers of Israeli economy is trying to adapt to the new environment brought by the pandemic. Despite the negative shocks on exports and labor markets, Israeli high-tech sector is flexible and ready to reorganize itself to better react for changing market conditions. This has already been reflected in the way how entrepreneurs and researchers are channeling their efforts into high-demand areas such as medicine and telecommunications, which in itself suggests existence of positive trends in the industry. We conclude our paper with a brief summary and a forecast of the development of Israeli economy. Despite diverse opinions on the efficiency of anti-crisis measures adopted by Israeli government, we admit that the current crisis is a substantial challenge for Israeli society but we also maintain that COVID-19 pandemic will not pose any existential threat to Israeli national economy. |
