"Israel's economy received praise, literally a song of praise from The Washington Post," Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman replied in his interviews when asked about inflation and the cost of living.
Lieberman is right - our macroeconomic situation is excellent compared to the world, and in some parameters also compared to previous years.
"Israel is an economic engine with the highest growth and one of the lowest inflation and unemployment rates in the world," one of the popular websites in the USA complimented us.
The World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and international credit rating agencies also praise the Israeli economy.
But it seems that these praises do not express what many citizens, especially from the weak and middle class, feel on a daily basis.
The cost of living is suffocating them.
True, the inflation here is lower than in Europe or the US, but how does this help those who have trouble making ends meet and increase the deficit in the bank?
Housing prices are still rising, photo: Ami Shoman
You don't go to the grocery store with praise from The Washington Post, and you can't use them to pay the inflated mortgage, or the rent that has increased for many citizens by thousands of shekels.
Housing prices jumped 19% in the past year - a dizzying pace not seen in more than a decade, and which surprised even the most pessimistic forecasters.
Moreover, it seems that the wave of price increases is not over yet.
Major food and toiletry suppliers, such as Diplomat and Kimberly Clark, have announced price increases.
This time the politicians did not respond.
They may have been busy with the elections, they may have thought that this was justified in view of the price increases in the world.
Either way, it looks like the peak is still ahead.
As we published in "Israel Today", the price of electricity may also soar, and as a result, so can water.
The Electric Company // Photo: Yehoshua Yosef,
Here too, the fact that our electricity is cheaper than electricity in the Netherlands does not really help.
The increase in wages does not catch up with the rate of price increase, the deficit is increasing and the debts of the households are increasing.
So it's true, the economy is stronger than ever, it is overcoming the political crisis, the corona and global inflation - but the citizen does not experience it in his pocket.
It should be said: the surplus in the state coffers amounts to more than 30 billion shekels, and despite the state's debt of a trillion shekels - the government can give more to the citizen.
Fortunately, more and more politicians from the right and the left realize that the wealth of the country does not trickle down to the citizens.
Many parties repeat promises such as free education up to the age of 3 and assistance for the elderly, and raise the social democratic flag on economic issues.
On the other hand: the right-wing party, which ran with the Singapore plan, has disappeared, and Abir Kara, who advocates a right-wing free economy, does not pass the blocking percentage either.
Likud, the largest right-wing party, also presented an economic plan, many parts of which resemble the agenda of the Labor Party.
Bottom line, the realization that the camel's back is about to break has begun to seep in, and it seems that issues such as free education up to the age of 3, the fight against monopolies and the expansion of competition will be promoted if Netanyahu forms a government or if Yair Lapid forms it.
So, at least in economic matters - there is room for cautious optimism.
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