How do you live the global crisis in Israel? Does the collapse of the stock exchanges and the sovereign risks that threaten the euro and the financial stability of the world matter more or the new protagonism of Palestine and the new role of Turkey and the long wave of the Arab rebellion? FIRSTonline asked Roger Abravanel, business consulting guru (ex McKinsey) and great connoisseur of Israel
FIRSTonline – Engineer Abravanel, how is Israel experiencing the global economic and financial crisis? Is it essentially uncorrelated or are the effects of the global economic slowdown and the stock market crisis being felt?
ABRAVANEL - The Israeli economy has had an exceptional performance in recent years, based on high tech exports. After the crisis in 2008 it slowed down slightly, but then the GDP started to grow again at levels of 4-5% a year without problems. Yet the state is indebted, almost 80% of the GDP, reduced from 110 of 10 years ago by the cuts made by Netanhiu, but the prudent fiscal policy of those years, above all growth, made it possible to maintain "Chinese" rhythms, while the stock market of Telaviv soared by +80 percent in 2009 and +15 in 2010. The lesson we will have to hold is that what matters is growth, even with high debt
FIRSTonline – What effect is the indecipherable Arab revolution and in particular the Egyptian enigma having on Israel and its economy?
ABRAVANEL – For the moment it is an effect of political rather than economic concern. The ongoing slowdown in 2011, albeit at levels above 4%, is more due to the slowdown in the world economy. The growth of the Israeli economy is more linked to high tech, such as software and biomedical which are less linked to the crisis.
FIRSTonline – How much does the new role that Turkey is taking on in the Mediterranean and in the Middle East weigh on Israel's economic and financial prospects?
ABRAVANEL – It's the same argument as before, the concern is more political than economic, even if in the end the economy will also be affected. In a short time Israel has lost two allies of the Arab world with which it was at peace, Egypt and Turkey. Add to this Iran which is arming itself with a nuclear bomb (and says that Israel has no right to exist) and Syria/Hezbollah which rearms Lebanon in defiance of UN observers and it is understandable why the Israelis are very worry. In addition, America, which has been an important protector of theirs for years, is certainly less powerful today and Obama is certainly not a friend of Israel like his predecessors
FIRSTonline – There is an aspect of the Israeli economy, perhaps less known to most but very interesting above all for the business world, which is represented by the excellent capacity for technological innovation, often of military origin: after the flying car or the numerous patents pharmaceuticals, what innovations are on the horizon in this field?
ABRAVANEL – In July in Milan in Piazza Duomo for a week we had an exhibition entitled "the unexpected Israel", which can be found on the internet and is a show of Israeli innovations that make the world better and that amaze anyone who comes into contact with them. in agriculture (pachino tomatoes and drip irrigation), in medicine (the treatment of multiple sclerosis), on the internet (algorithms at the base of email, skype, etc.) in TV (pay TV) in telephony (the answering machine) and so on.
