(Communicated by the Office of the Spokesperson and Economic Information, Bank of Israel)

The annual International Monetary Fund mission today started its series of talks in Israel with a meeting with the management of the Bank of Israel. The mission consists of four economists, with Peter Doyle, Division Chief in the European Department in the IMF, as mission chief. 

As in previous years, the mission will meet with leading figures in Israel's economy in both the public and business sectors, including the Governor and Bank of Israel officials, the Minister of Finance and senior Ministry officials, senior officials in other government ministries, banks, the Manufacturers Association of Israel, the Histadrut (General Federation of Labor), and academics. 

At the end of its visit on 13 February, the mission will present its preliminary report to the Governor of the Bank of Israel and the Minister of Finance. The detailed annual report will then be compiled in Washington, and presented to the IMF Executive Board, the procedure applicable to all member countries. 

The IMF reports have wide distribution and engender great interest in money markets around the world, and they affect the credit rating of the economies reviewed and the recommendations of the investment banks regarding investing in Israel.