‘Sort of Isolation’: Israeli Stocks on Losing Streak as Gaza City Operation Intensifies

September 16, 2025 News
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. (Design: Palestine Chronicle)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Israel’s growing international isolation, saying the country needed to become a ‘Super Sparta’.

Israeli stocks are on track for a five-day losing streak as the intensification of Israel’s ongoing genocidal assault on Gaza triggers renewed investor anxiety, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

The report indicated that the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange 35 Index (TA-35) dropped as much as 2.3% on Tuesday, “at one point recording the steepest losses globally, before recovering slightly to close down 0.2%.”

The decline occurred despite a continued rally in global markets driven by expectations of further easing by the US Federal Reserve, the report stated, adding that the selloff affected nearly every sector, with 31 of the TA-35 index’s 35 constituents falling.

Major players, such as Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. and Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd., were responsible for roughly 37 percent of the index’s movement.

Despite this downturn, the Israeli stock market had shown strong performance earlier in the year, with the TA-35 rising 26% through September 9, the report added. However, that momentum has sharply reversed as the assault on Gaza drags on with no clear resolution in sight.

The report noted that the prolonged assault on Gaza, particularly the renewed military operations targeting Gaza City, has triggered concern from business leaders and market analysts.

Images of destruction and mounting international criticism, even from allies of Israel, have added pressure on the market, the report stated.

‘Super Sparta’

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Israel’s growing international isolation and pledged to pursue economic self-sufficiency in the face of potential sanctions.

“The costs of endless wars on all fronts in terms of lost growth, emigration of human capital, worse international relations, greater domestic political polarisation, and arguably, no better security all weigh on Israeli asset prices,” Hasnain Malik, a strategist at Tellimer in Dubai, told Bloomberg.

Malik added that Netanyahu’s latest speech “urges preparedness for more economic autarky reinforces those concerns.”

Netanyahu said “Israel is in a sort of isolation” and needed to become a “Super Sparta” and be self-reliant.

‘Unprecedented Economic Downturn’

The Israel Business Forum, which represents most private sector workers from 200 of the entity’s largest companies, warned that Netanyahu’s policies are leading Israel into a “dangerous and unprecedented economic and political downturn.”

US Lifeline Masks Israel’s Economic Freefall as Global Divestment Grows

“We are not Sparta — this vision as presented will make it difficult for us to survive in an evolving global world,” the forum warned. “We are marching toward a political, economic, and social abyss that will endanger our existence in Israel.”

“The Israeli economy shows exceptional resilience, despite the security and political challenges — but not forever,” the forum added, according to Al Mayadeen.

Tel Aviv Urged to Change Course

The forum demanded that Netanyahu “stop this” policy and called on the government to immediately change course.

‘High Cost for Israel’ – EU Proposes to Reimpose Duties on Israeli Goods

Israel’s ongoing genocidal war against the people of Gaza, launched in October 2023, has so far resulted in the deaths of close to 65,000 Palestinians, with more than 164,000 wounded. The vast majority of the population has been displaced, and the destruction of infrastructure is unprecedented since World War II. Thousands of people are still missing.

(Al Mayadeen)

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