Israel Financial News

Investing.com-- South Korea’s KOSPI index surged over 4% on Monday after the government reimposed a ban on short-selling shares in a bid to level the playing field for retail and institutional investors. 

Investing.com-- Oil prices rose in Asian trade on Monday amid easing fears of more Federal Reserve rate hikes, although anticipation of several economic readings this week, particularly from China, kept traders on edge. 

“With the election buzz around the corner, steering clear of volatile stocks, especially in the smallcap realm, would be smart,” says Sonam Srivastava, Founder and Fund Manager at Wright Research, PMS. In an interview with ETMarkets, Srivastava said: “Considering the delayed festive season, placing bets on the consumption narrative, commodity and energy sectors, sizable banking and financial entities, and IT stocks, which have caught the eye of FIIs, could be a strategic approach to capitalize on the present dip” Edited excerpts: We have seen markets coming down from highs in both Sensex and Nifty. What is fueling the fall – is it the combination of a rise in US Yields and geopolitical concerns? The Sensex and Nifty have seen a notable correction lately, which seems a bit out of place considering India's strong growth narrative.

Pashupati Advani, Founder & Chairman, Global Foray, says “I unfortunately bailed out of Paytm a little early, so I am kind of watching it go up and missing it. Zomato is okay and with the World Cup, definitely the numbers have been good and the stickiness is also going to be there. So it is the way India is moving and it is new patterns that are coming up and we actually have to predict those to make money.” How is your portfolio shaping up? What have you been busy analysing and adding in your portfolios? I am a little bit reluctant to add aggressively simply because we are not at highs. But there is a lot of turmoil. I find it very difficult to believe that even though people are slaughtering each other in Israel and Gaza and in Ukraine and Russia, markets continue to trade up sort of quite interestingly. But there obviously seems to be money around. But I am a little surprised at where things are going. I have actually not been so aggressive.

WhatsApp's AI sticker generator, which allows users to turn their text prompts into stickers in seconds, created images of guns or a boy holding an AK 47 rifle when asked to create stickers with the prompts 'Palestinian', 'Palestine' or 'Muslim boy Palestinian'. In stark contrast, the WhatsApp AI sticker generator produced images of children smiling or playing football when prompted with "Israeli boy".

Israeli Army said on Sunday that «significant strikes» are being carried out and the Gaza Strip has been «cut into two», Al Jazeera reported. Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that the Israeli forces «have encircled Gaza City» and «now there exists a south Gaza and a north Gaza». «Troops reached the coastline and are holding it», he added. «There are now widespread strikes on terror infrastructure — below ground and above it,» Al Jazeera quoted Hagari as saying. In another statement, Chief of the General Staff, LTG Herzi Halevi, during a meeting in the Northern Command, said that the IDF is ready to strike in the northern Gaza at «any moment». «We have a clear goal of restoring a significantly better security situation at the borders, not only in the Gaza Strip...We are ready to strike in the north at any moment,» IDF posted on X (formerly Twitter). Earlier in the day, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel will not agree to a ceasefire until the Hamas terror group releases the hostages it is holding, The Times of Israel reported. «Take this (word 'ceasefire') out of the lexicon. We will continue until we defeat them; we do not have an alternative,» Netanyahu is quoted saying in a statement from his office. Meanwhile, Israeli envoy to the US, Michael Herzog called Gaza as the world's «biggest terror complex», Times of Israel reported. He said that Gaza is «the biggest terror complex in the world,» with tens of thousands of fighters and rockets, among other weaponry — and 310 miles (500 kilometres) of underground tunnels. «This is what we're up against.

United States and its Arab allies appeared divided over Israel's military offensive in Gaza to defeat Hamas, as Washington, alongside Israel, resisted pressure for an immediate ceasefire despite the rising death toll among Palestinian civilians. In a rare display of a public split, Arab foreign ministers at a press conference pushed U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to persuade Israel to agree to a ceasefire.

Oil prices edged up on Monday after top exporters Saudi Arabia and Russia said they would stick to extra voluntary oil output cuts until the end of the year, keeping supply tight, while investors watched out for tougher U.S. sanctions on Iranian oil. Brent crude futures rose 41 cents, or 0.5%, to $85.30 a barrel by 0000 GMT while U.S.

William J Burns, arrived in Israel on Sunday to hold discussions with leaders and intelligence officials, the first stop in a multi-country trip in the region, New York Times reported citing US officials. The visit comes as the US is trying to prod Israel to pursue a more targeted approach to attacking Hamas, allow pauses in the fighting for aid to enter Gaza and do more to avoid civilian casualties, according to NYT. Washington is also looking to expand its intelligence sharing with Tel Aviv, providing information that could be useful about hostage locations or any follow-on attacks by Hamas. A US official briefed on Burns' trip said that he planned to reinforce the American commitment to intelligence cooperation with partners in the region. Burns will travel to several Middle Eastern countries for discussions about the situation in Gaza, ongoing hostage negotiations and the importance of deterring the war with Hamas from widening to a broader context, NYT reported citing the US official. US officials have been visiting Israel at a regular cadence since war broke out after Hamas fighters attacked Israeli towns on October 7 and killed more than 1,400 people. Israel has retaliated with a massive counteroffensive including air campaign and ground invasion into Gaza, where Hamas is in control. More than 9,000 Palestinians have been killed in airstrikes since Israel began retaliating, according to Gaza's health ministry.

Read all the latest updates on the Israel-Hamas war hereThe Israeli military has discovered an extensive stash of weapons in a home in Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip as it searched the area. It found rifles, grenades, explosives, suicide drones and missiles in the residence, bringing some of the weapons back to Israel to inspect them.

Amichai Eliyahu suggested that dropping nuclear weapons on Gaza is «one of the options» and no aid should be transferred to Gaza, Times of Israel reported. His remarks drew condemnation including from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who suspended him «indefinitely». On being asked in an interview with Radio Kol Berama whether he was suggesting that some kind of nuclear bomb might be dropped on the enclave, Heritage Minister Amichai Eliyahu said «That's one way.» Eliyahu voiced his objection against any humanitarian aid into Gaza, saying «We wouldn't hand the Nazis humanitarian aid,» and charging that «there is no such thing as uninvolved civilians in Gaza,» Times of Israel reported. He further backed retaking the territory of the Gaza Strip and restoring the settlements there. On being asked about the fate of the Palestinian population, he said, «They can go to Ireland or deserts, the monsters in Gaza should find a solution by themselves.» The Israeli Minister asserted that the northern Strip has «no right to exist», adding that anyone waving a Palestinian or Hamas flag «shouldn't continue living on the face of the earth,» Times of Israel reported. The remarks were immediately denounced by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said that Eliyahu's words are «detached from reality». «Israel and the IDF are acting in accordance with the highest standards of international law in order to prevent harm to uninvolved people, and we will continue to do that all the way to victory,» Netanyahu says in a statement. The premiere's office also announced that Eliyahu has been suspended from government meetings indefinitely, Times of Israel reported. However, the government ministers raised objections to Eliyahu's sacking

Al Jazeera, Hagari said, “There are now widespread strikes on terror infrastructure - below ground and above it," Al Jazeera quoted Hagari as saying. Army spokesperson said that the Israeli forces have encircled Gaza City and “now there exists a south Gaza and a north Gaza". Also Read: From Jordan to Turkey - Which countries have recalled ambassadors from Israel amid war? “Troops reached the coastline and are holding it," he added.

military action that became inevitable given the remorseless logic created by the October 7 attacks by Hamas that killed some 1,400 Israelis. Given the magnitude of that move, Israel had no option but to attack Gaza with stated maximalist aims: the elimination of Hamas. Considering the militant organisation runs the densely populated territory — it's more Taliban than the Islamic State, in this respect — civilian casualties are sadly inevitable as Israel follows its goal of uprooting it.

S Jaishankar on Sunday spoke with his Iranian counterpart and discussed the grave situation in West Asia and the concern of the international community. “Spoke today with Iranian Foreign Minister @Amirabdolahian.

By Doina Chiacu

BAGHDAD (Reuters) — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken paid an unannounced visit to Iraq on Sunday, as he tours the Middle East attempting to tamp down tensions after war erupted between Israel and Palestinian militants Hamas last month.

By Dilara Senkaya and Mehmet Emin Caliskan

On October 25, 2023, blockchain analytics firm Elliptic released a statement clarifying misconceptions surrounding the extent of cryptocurrency funding received by Hamas. The firm emphasized the absence of substantial evidence supporting claims that Hamas has garnered significant crypto donations. This follows heightened scrutiny on cryptocurrency's role in financing terrorism, especially in the wake of the tragic incidents on October 7, orchestrated by Hamas.

Financial experts have for long touted the benefits of long-term investing, especially where it concerns equity mutual funds. Yet, a large number of retail investors continue to exit the markets after a short duration. According to data from Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi), 51.4%, or more than half, of the investments held by retail investors have an average holding period of just more than two years.

Oil prices made a downward turn on Friday, spurred by easing Middle East supply concerns amidst the Israel-Hamas war and speculation of the US Federal Reserve halting interest rate hikes. Brent crude futures were recorded at $84.89 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate crude stood at $80.51 a barrel, marking a weekly drop exceeding 6%. Despite warnings of potential wider conflict at Lebanon’s border with Israel by Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, markets remained steady. John Kilduff of Again Capital LLC stated that this conflict seems unlikely to significantly disrupt demand or supply.

Matthew Yglesias is a columnist for Bloomberg Opinion. A co-founder of and former columnist for Vox, he writes the Slow Boring blog and newsletter. He is author of “One Billion Americans." Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world