US President Joe Biden urges caution in Israel, as traders bet against the Israeli shekel. The weakening shekel may impact Israel's economy, and the Bank of Israel focuses on currency stabilization. Netflix's subscriber growth is discussed, along with the potential delay of a major US tech deal.
Read more
AI Summary
AI Chapters
Episode notes
auto_awesome
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
The US and Israel have reached an agreement to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, indicating the pressing need for support and underscoring the ongoing conflict's human toll.
Investors are betting against the Israeli Shekel, reflecting concerns over the potential escalation of the Israel-Hamas conflict and its economic implications for Israel.
Deep dives
US and Israeli agreement to allow aid into Gaza
Following a meeting between US President Joe Biden and the Israeli cabinet, an agreement has been reached to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza. The US will be providing $100 million of aid to support food, medicine, and vital necessities for conflict-affected Palestinians. The deal comes after a catastrophic explosion in a Gaza hospital, which overshadowed Biden's visit to Israel. The attack raises questions about America's relationship with the Middle East and the potential fallout for Israel's ground offensive in Gaza.
Investors betting against the Israeli Shekel
Despite the Bank of Israel's efforts to support the currency, investors are betting against the Israeli Shekel due to the risk of the Israel-Hamas conflict escalating. The Shekel has weakened to its lowest level since 2015, down about 5% over the past week and a half. This bet against the Shekel is driven by concerns of higher costs associated with the war and potential interest rate cuts by the central bank. The weakening currency poses risks for Israel's economy, including higher inflation from imported goods and potential capital flight by international investors.
Israel will let basic humanitarian aid into Gaza through Egypt, traders have been increasing their bets against the Israeli shekel, TK Netflix, and Beijing is weighing holding up US chipmaker Broadcom’s $69bn acquisition of cloud software company VMware.
The FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson, Kasia Broussalian and Marc Filippino. Additional help by Monica Lopez, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Topher Forhecz is the FT’s executive producer. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show’s theme song is by Metaphor Music.