Tel Aviv 35 rises 1.99% to 4,206.35 points ahead of Israeli election

Key Facts

The Tel Aviv 35 rose 1.99% to 4,206.35 points in Monday’s session, October 26, posting a rebound after losses in the previous session, according to data reported by Globes. The market closed on the eve of the national election scheduled for Tuesday, as voter surveys put the economy and cost of living among the leading election issues. The Tel Aviv 125 rose 1.81% to 4,108.05 points, while the BlueTech Global index gained 1.08% to 614.31 points. Stock market breadth showed widespread gains, with 271 stocks advancing against 204 decliners, while 83 ended the session unchanged, according to Investing.com. The benchmark index had lost 1.01% on Friday, October 23, making Monday’s gains a recovery of part of the previous decline before trading halts on election day.

Gains were concentrated in specific sectors and stocks. The oil and gas index advanced 2.04%, while the insurance index rose 1.28% during the session. Palo Alto Networks was the biggest gainer on the Tel Aviv 35, rising 9.97%, followed by Tower Semiconductor, up 6.77%, and Camtek, which gained 5.54%. Elbit Systems rose 5.18% after announcing a new contract with a country in the Asia-Pacific region. By contrast, Strauss Group fell 5.25%, the largest decline among index constituents, and Teva dropped 0.57%; they were the only two index stocks to close lower, according to Globes.

Stock trading totaled 4.93 billion shekels in Monday’s session, alongside bond trading worth 4.63 billion shekels, according to Globes. In the foreign exchange market, the shekel’s representative rate was set at 3.078 shekels per dollar, down 1.093% from Friday’s level, meaning the Israeli currency strengthened against the dollar under the pricing reported. The currency and stock moves come amid broader performance since the October 7, 2023 attacks; Reuters reported that the Tel Aviv market has risen 130% since then, outpacing Wall Street’s 80% gain, while the shekel has advanced 25% over the same period. Reuters said some investors saw scope for further gains if the opposition defeated Benjamin Netanyahu, on the assumption that regional tensions and political risks would ease. The agency also reported that other investors believed Israeli assets could hold up whatever the election outcome.

The 26th Knesset election will be held on October 27, 2026, according to the Central Elections Committee’s timetable. It is the first national election since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack, and is widely seen as a referendum on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s leadership, according to the Associated Press. The economy and cost of living are among voters’ concerns: 38% of Jewish Israelis said they were the first or second most important issue in the election, rising to 46% among Arab Israelis, according to a survey cited by the Israel Democracy Institute and reported by the agency. Election issues also include the conscription of Haredi men; about 13,000 reach the conscription age of 18 each year, but fewer than 10% enlist, according to the Associated Press. Local trading will halt on Tuesday, election day, following the session before the vote.