- Israeli stocks, as defined by the BlueStar Israel Global Index® (BIGI®), declined 4.45% in the first quarter of 2022, outperforming developed international equities by 1.34%, as measured by MSCI EAFE.
- Israeli technology stocks, as defined by the BlueStar Israel Global Technology Index™ (BIGITech®), lost 11.44% in Q1, following in trend but slightly behind the Dow Jones US Tech and S&P Global Tech indexes at -9.94% and -9.92%, respectively.
- BIGI underperformed the TA-125 Index of Israeli-listed stocks in the first quarter of 2022 by 3.80%, as the TA-125 does not include many of Israel’s top foreign–listed technology companies.
- In March, MVIS announced the launch of the BlueStar Israel Infrastructure Index (BILIN) to track the performance of Israeli companies benefitting from increased funding and the construction boom in the development of Israel’s national infrastructure.
- The attractiveness of Israeli government debt, as defined by the BlueStar Israel Government USD Bond Index, remains compelling as global interest rates rise. With a yield to maturity (YTM) of 2.76%, it leads U.S. Government Five-Year Bond at 2.64% and the YTM on Shekel-denominated Israeli government debt at 1.25%.
- Israel’s geopolitical status continues to Improve as Q1 ended with a historic “Negev Summit’ bringing the leaders of Bahrain, UAE, and Egypt together in Israel for the first time.
- After nearly a year-long run, the shekel finally weakened in Q1 bringing additional stability to an economy that although slowing slightly, still remains strong relative to its OECD peers.
- Israel’s governing faces severe challenges as the prospects of an eventual coalition break-up grew steadily during the past quarter.