As of tomorrow, the Israeli government will cease its policy of purchasing $100 million per day. The program, started in July 2008, was meant to ensure that the worth of the shekel would not drop significantly by backing-up the currency. Due to stabilization in the economy, the Bank of Israel decided to end the program, according to reports. However, the Bank does intend to periodically invest in foreign currency, dependent on fluctuations in the economy.
Following the announcement, the shekel-dollar exchange rate dropped nearly 1-percent to 3.88 shekels to the dollar. As a frame of reference, during the height of the recession, the shekel dollar exchange rate plummeted to approximately 3.2 shekels to the dollar. Approximately two years ago, prior to the global economic downturn, the shekel-dollar exchange rate was about 4.3 shekels to the dollar.
Last summer, the Israeli government released a new two-shekel coin, worth approximately 50-cents. When the dollar reached its low-point, Israelis jokingly started referred to the newly minted coin as the ‘dollar.
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
