Economy of Israel

For 2006, Israeli exports grew by 11% to just over $29 billion; the hi-tech sector accounted for $14 billion, a 20% increase from the previous year. ^[5]

Israeli exports in 2006

The United States is Israel's largest trading partner; two-way trade totalled some $12.6 billion in 1997. The principal U.S. exports to Israel include computers, integrated circuits, aircraft parts and other defense equipment, wheat, and automobiles. Israel's chief exports to the U.S. include cut diamonds, jewelry, integrated circuits, printing machinery, and telecommunications equipment. The two countries signed a free trade agreement (FTA) in 1985 that progressively eliminated tariffs on most goods traded between the two countries over the following ten years. An agricultural trade accord was signed in November 1996, which addressed the remaining goods not covered in the FTA. Some non-tariff barriers and tariffs on goods remain, however. Israel also has trade and cooperation agreements in place with the European Union and Canada, and is seeking to conclude such agreements with a number of other countries, including Turkey, Jordan and several countries in Eastern Europe.

Until the last decade, Israel's trade with the Arab world was minimal due to the Arab League boycott. Beginning in 1945, Arab nations not only refused to have direct trade with Israel (the primary boycott), but they also refused to do business with any corporation that operated in Israel, or any corporation that did business with a corporation that did business with Israel (the secondary and tertiary boycotts).

2.8% of the country's GDP is derived from Agricultural activity. While Israel imports substantial quantities of grain, it is largely self-sufficient in other agricultural products and food stuffs, due to the fact that food must be regulated Kashrut for sale in the Israeli retail market, and hence imports almost no food products from other countries. For centuries, farmers in Israel have grown varieties of citrus fruits such as grapefruit, oranges and lemons. Citrus fruits are still Israel's major agricultural export (see Jaffa orange).

Israel is one of the world's major exporters of military equipment, accounting for 10%^{[citation needed]} of the world total in 2007.

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Income

Comparing incomes of a median household in Israel vs. other countries.

OECD, PPP conversion rates. Retrieved on 2006-01-20. OECD, PPP conversion rates in Israel. Retrieved on 2007-01-25.

Country	Median household income national currency units	Year	PPP rate (OECD)	Median household income (PPP)
Switzerland^[8]	95,184 CHF	2005	1.74	$55,000
California, US^[9]	US State			$54,000
United States	$48,000 USD	2006	1.00	$48,000
Canada ^[10]	$53,634 CAD	2005	1.21	$44,000
New Zealand ^[11]	$62,556 NZD	2007	1.54	$41,000
United Kingdom ^[12]	£24,700 GBP	2004	0.632	$39,000
Australia^[13]	$53,404 AUD	2006	1.41	$38,000
Israel^[14]	₪107,820 ILS	2006	2.90	$37,000
Ireland	€35,410 EUR	2005	1.02	$35,000
Scotland, United Kingdom^[15]	£21,892 GBP	2005	0.649	$34,000
West Virginia, US^[16]	US state			$33,000
Hong Kong^[17]	$186,000 HKD	2005	5.96	$31,000
Singapore^[18]	$45,960 SGD	2005	1.55	$30,000

Annual data 2006	Historical averages (%) 2002-06
Population (m) - 7.1	Population growth - 1.8
GDP per head (US$; purchasing power parity) - 27,588	Real GDP growth - 3.1
Percent of unemployed persons (January 2007) - 7.6	Inflation - 1.9
Exchange rate (av) NIS:US$ - 4.2	Current-account balance (% of GDP) - 1.6

According to the data published by the Israeli central bank, 60% of the poor households in Israel are of the Haredi Jews and the Israeli Arabs in which there is a high birth rate and a low participation rate in the labor force.