- Israeli stocks, as defined by the BlueStar Israel Global Index®(BIGI®), retreated 1.17% in Q1 2021, underperforming developed international equities by 4.77%, as measured by MSCI EAFE. This comes following a breakout 2020, in which BIGI posted a return of 28.41% for the full year, leading MSCI EAFE by an impressive 20.13%.
- Israeli technology stocks, as defined by the BlueStar Israel Global Technology Index™(BIGITech®), regressed 5.36% in Q1 2021, trailing the Dow Jones US Tech and S&P Global Tech indexes by 8.82% and 7.49%, respectively. This temporary backslide comes on the heels of an impressive 2020, which saw BIGITech® return 62.37%, leading the Dow Jones US Tech by 15.05% and S&P Global Tech by 18.42%.
- BIGI underperformed the TA-125 Index of Israeli-listed stocks in Q1 2021 by 3.17%. For the full-year of 2020, BIGI led the TA-125 by 24.17%.
- Following a busy 2020, which saw an unprecedented number IPOs for Israeli companies valued at more than $9 billion, 2021 is slated to surpass those numbers with several early IPOs in Q1, and a robust pipeline of potential IPO candidates for second half of the year.
- A catalyst for the flurry in IPOs has been the utilization of SPACs — a vehicle which could provide a quicker, and often times, a more efficient path for companies to go public.
- Israel’s world-leading COVID-19 vaccination drive, which demonstrated the country’s public health prowess, is starting to see an impact. With COVID-19 cases down to manageable levels and a majority of the population vaccinated, Israel has ended the mandate to wear face masks in public.
- After Israel’s fourth election in two years, it seems that it’s government uncertainty will continue unless Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can form a new government before May 4. If not, a possible fifth election could be in play.