Foreign Investors Await Israeli Elections, Showing Strong Market Interest
Translated & summarized from Calcalist by baba
Foreign investors are keenly interested in Israel's economy but are delaying significant investments until after the upcoming elections, according to Yossi Levi, CEO of More Pension and Provident Funds. He expects capital to flow into Israel within months of the election, citing the country's strong economic fundamentals. Other industry leaders discussed the importance of tech sector exposure over geography and the unpredictable, potentially vast impact of artificial intelligence on global markets. The discussion also covered the local pension fund market's significant capital inflows and the evolving market reaction to political news.
The story in 7 lines · by baba
- Foreign investors are interested in Israel but are waiting for election results before investing, says Yossi Levi.
- Levi expects increased capital flow to Israel one to two months after the elections.
- Exposure to tech and semiconductor sectors is more important than geography for investors, according to Gilad Altshuler.
- The impact of artificial intelligence on markets is still largely unknown and potentially vast, experts noted.
- Significant inflows into Israeli pension funds are creating substantial capital for local investment.
- The market's reaction to political and security news has changed, with less predictable outcomes.
- Investment houses face competitive disadvantages against insurance companies in the pension market.
Foreign investors are showing significant interest in the Israeli market but are largely waiting for the upcoming elections to conclude before committing capital, according to Yossi Levi, CEO of More Pension and Provident Funds. Speaking at a conference in Tel Aviv, Levi noted that while the Israeli economy exhibits attractive characteristics such as high growth and a manageable deficit, political uncertainty is a key factor influencing investment decisions.
Levi expressed optimism that a clearer political picture post-election could lead to a substantial increase in capital flow into Israel within one to two months. He highlighted that the Israeli economy offers considerable growth potential compared to stagnant European economies.
The discussion also touched upon institutional investors' exposure to overseas markets. He pointed to Japan and Taiwan as examples where semiconductor companies drive investment, and explained the high exposure to the U.S. is due to the presence of major tech firms there.
Altshuler also commented on the nascent impact of artificial intelligence, drawing parallels to the early days of the iPhone and the internet, suggesting its future influence could be far more profound and widespread than currently understood. Lapidot also addressed the imbalance in the local capital market, driven by substantial inflows into pension funds, creating a large pool of capital available for domestic investment.
He also commented that the performance comparison between the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and Wall Street depends heavily on the measurement timeframe. Towards the end of the panel, Levi discussed the competitive landscape between investment houses and insurance companies in the pension market, suggesting that investment houses need greater regulatory flexibility to increase their market share.
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