The Bank of Israel reported that new mortgages granted in May were higher than the 2012 average of NIS 3.3 billion per month.
NIS 4 billion in new mortgages were granted during May 2012, higher than the average per month (NIS 3.3 billion) since the beginning of the year. This brought households' total mortgage debt to NIS 263 billion, the Bank of Israel reported today. Total household debt rose by NIS 1.8 billion during April, up 0.7% over March, to NIS 368 billion.
Business sector debt rose by NIS 4 billion during April to NIS 790 billion. Most of the increase in debt was due to the rise in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and depreciation of the shekel against the dollar during the month. The business sector (excluding banks and insurance companies) issued NIS 2 billion in bonds during May, of which 81%, or NIS 1.6 billion, was issued by real estate companies.
Bond issues averaged NIS 2.2 billion a month in January-May.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 24, 2012
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