Jerusalem, 10 May, 2026 (TPS-IL) — During April, there was an improvement in the net balance of businesses in Israel’s construction, retail trade, and services sectors. This is according to the data released by Israel’s Central Bureau of Statistics.
The ceasefire with Iran came into effect after the first week of April.
Despite the ceasefire with Iran and the lifting of Home Front Command restrictions, there has been no improvement in the business situation in the hotel industry and the balance stands at -46, similar to March.
Economic activity balances in March compared to February:
In all sectors (except manufacturing), the net balances on economic activity (sales/nights) are negative and very low. They indicate a significant decrease in the scope of economic activity due to the war.
In the service industries, the net balance on sales fell to -30. The last time such a level was estimated was in October 2023.
Expectations for economic activity in May
Despite the ceasefire, managers’ expectations for economic activity in the retail, hotel, and service sectors in May are negative.
The percentage of companies that were severely damaged during the war with Iran is higher than the percentage recorded during Operation Rising Lion against Iran in June 2025.
About 21% of companies in the industrial sectors report that the security situation is harming their economic activity in April, compared to about 14% of companies that reported this after Operation Rising Lion.
In the hotel industry, there was no change in this estimate following the ceasefire, and in April, approximately 91% of companies reported that the security situation was seriously harming their operations.