Electronic Intifada : Business & Economy

Israel offers Palestinians day shoppers, not statehood

Wed, 15 Jul 2009 11:26:42 PST

The reality of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's promises of "economic peace" for the Palestinians is nowhere under greater scrutiny than in Jenin, the northern West Bank city being aggressively promoted as a potential model of cooperation with Israel. Jonathan Cook reports from Jenin.

Palestinian olive oil's Fairtrade journey

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 10:43:33 PST

In spring 2008, several years of careful negotiations finally culminated in the first Palestinian olive oil being awarded Fairtrade status. The oil, sourced from the Palestine Fair Trade Producers Company (PFTPC), based in the West Bank city of Jenin, is both the first Palestinian product to receive Fairtrade certification, and the first olive oil to be allowed to use the mark. Sarah Irving reports for The Electronic Intifada.

Israeli settlement produce may be enjoying EU privileges

Mon, 06 Apr 2009 10:02:10 PST

BRUSSELS (IPS) - European Union officials are seeking evidence to support claims that fruit and vegetables from Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories are being exported under false pretense. In a note circulated to its fellow EU governments in late 2008, Britain expressed concern that goods from Israeli settlements in the West Bank may be entering the Union without paying the legally required duties.

Report: UK economic links with Israeli settlements

Wed, 18 Mar 2009 11:30:18 PST

The purpose of this report is to document economic links between UK companies and those based in settlements. The research has identified 68 British companies which have direct or indirect relationships with Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory; 49 of which have their head office in the United Kingdom and 19 of which are British subsidiaries of companies based in Israel or other countries.

Justice and couscous

Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:38:07 PST

The spirit's resolve is an amazing tool for change and was the trigger for a remarkable group of women from Ein al-Sultan camp to come together a few years ago to devise an innovative way in which to break free from the shackles of their destitution. And so begins the inspirational story of Jericho's women's fair trade couscous cooperative. Gen Sander reports from Jericho.

Palestinian economy: Foundation of a state or common burden?

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 10:45:28 PST

Perhaps the most nuanced aspect of Palestinian suffering that goes more or less unnoticed is the abominable state of the Palestinian economy. The systemic and perpetual economic hindrances imposed upon the Palestinian economy by the Israeli occupation are viewed by most experts to be the primary impediment to allowing the Palestinian economy to reach its full potential. Sami Halabi analyzes for The Electronic Intifada.

Israel besieges Gaza's fishing industry

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 16:15:13 PST

RAMALLAH, West Bank (IPS) - Israeli naval commandos recently hauled off three international peace activists off Palestinian fishing boats seven nautical miles off Gaza's coast. They were accompanying 15 Palestinian fishermen attempting to complete a day's fishing without being shot at or arrested by the Israeli navy

World bank assails Israeli chokehold on West Bank

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 08:41:39 PST

WASHINGTON (IPS) - The West Bank's economy continues to gasp for air despite increased international aid mainly because Israel keeps the Palestinian territory in a stranglehold, says the World Bank. Israel's illegal settlements, security cordons, and hundreds of roadblocks pose the most significant obstacle to the movement of people and goods, the Washington-based bank says in a new assessment. Violence and vandalism by Israeli settlers further deters investment, it adds.

Honey makes Hebron life a bit sweeter

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 10:49:18 PST

HEBRON (IRIN) - The toughest part of the West Bank just got a bit sweeter, with an influx of beehives, helping farmers cope with the decline in their economic situation. Stuck between two Israeli settlements, the Palestinian residents of Wadi al-Ghrous in Hebron are surrounded by military bases and fences, their movements are restricted, and over the past 25 years they have been affected by Israeli land expropriations.

Salam Fayyad's cynical party

Mon, 26 May 2008 05:31:34 PST

The Palestine Investment Conference held from 21 until 23 May in Bethlehem has incited broad resistance from Palestinian popular organizations. In his invitation to investors appointed Palestinian Authority (PA) Prime Minister Salam Fayyad wrote, "We are throwing a party and the whole world is invited." EI contributor Adri Nieuwhof writes.

Investors warned about access to occupied Palestine

Wed, 21 May 2008 03:18:40 PST

As hundreds of international investors begin arriving in Bethlehem for the Palestine Investment Conference scheduled for 21-23 May, the threat of being barred from entering the occupied West Bank by Israeli officials is likely to be foremost on everyone's mind. Those hoping to actually invest in Palestine will be looking for answers regarding who will guarantee unhindered access in the future for themselves, their staff and the suppliers needed for investments to succeed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

Too quiet in Gaza's harbor

Tue, 06 May 2008 09:17:35 PST

GAZA CITY, 6 May (IPS) - It's been strangely quiet for some time at the port in Gaza. No clanging of hooks, no sounds of creaking cranes or of thumping of nets upon decks. Boat engines, normally puttering and spewing exhaust, lie entombed under covers. Of the 40,000 fishermen and others who make a living from the catch, only about 700 are still busy, according to the Fishing Syndicate in Gaza. The boats need oil, and Israel will not let the fishermen have it.

Israel's oil refineries privatized: the Palestinian economy perspective

Fri, 04 Apr 2008 00:29:31 PST

Over a year has passed since Israel privatized its oil refineries in Haifa and Ashdod to private companies. The Haifa refineries were bought by a group of investors lead by the Ofer brothers, two of Israel's richest capitalists through their company Israel Corp. The Ashdod refineries were bought by the Paz petrol company owned by Zadik Bino. What may appear to be an internal Israeli matter, has in fact a crucial impact on the Palestinian economy in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as well.

Food prices double in besieged Gaza

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 05:12:32 PST

"There have been rapid price increases over the last few months because of the closure. Three months ago, for instance, a liter of corn oil cost 19 shekels [the equivalent of $4.50]. Now it costs 29 shekels [$7]. The price of flour has also doubled; three months ago a kilo of flour was two shekels. Now our customers have to pay four shekels." PCHR reports on how the siege has affected business owners like Anwar Abu al-Kass and the availability of food in Gaza.

Hegemony through free trade: Interview with Daoud Hamoudi

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 02:33:49 PST

In this interview by EI contributor Stefan Christoff, Daoud Hamoudi of the Grassroots Palestinian Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign discusses how apartheid economics is critical to US and Israeli policy in the region, implemented through neo-liberal bilateral trade accords, or on the ground in Palestine where Israel is pushing a plan to build industrial processing zones.

Gaza flower producers watch their industry die

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 03:43:08 PST

When Hassan Sheikh Hijazi first opened his flower farm in 1991, it flourished. "We had a very good family business," he says. "We exported hundreds of thousands of flowers to Holland and from there our flowers were sold across Europe. The traders knew our flowers were good quality -- and Gaza was open for business." With its mild coastal weather and well-drained soil, the Gaza Strip is an ideal location for commercial flower farming. There are more than a hundred small flowers farms across the Gaza Strip, and they employ some 7,000 farm workers between them.

No Valentine break for Gaza flower producers

Thu, 14 Feb 2008 11:31:42 PST

RAFAH, Gaza Strip, 14 February (IPS) - After generations of occupation, Valentine's Day has meant little in the Gaza Strip. But the flowers that lovers presented in Europe has. Majed Hadaeid, 43, knows that better than most, as he watches livestock make a meal of the flowers he had hoped to export to Europe. "I have 130 dunams [32 acres]," he says. "All carnations, in 30 different colors, and varieties yielding 16-17 million blossoms per year."

Damaging frost compounds farmers' woes

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 05:07:36 PST

HEBRON, WEST BANK, 10 February (IRIN) - A recent cold snap with sub-zero temperatures has caused farmers in the West Bank to incur losses of nearly US$14.5 million, according to initial estimates by the Palestinian ministry of agriculture (MoA) set out in a 6 February joint "fact sheet" with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The winter cash crop is the most profitable and "[as] a direct result of the frost, thousands of farmers have lost their main source of income for the next [few] months," the "fact sheet," which was emailed to IRIN, said.

Gaza fishermen: "We are ready to work"

Thu, 07 Feb 2008 09:16:52 PST

"I've been a fisherman for thirty six years, ever since I was 15 years old. My original village, al-Jura, was famous for its fishermen. When my father migrated to Gaza in 1948, he came here by boat." Jamal Mohammed Bassalla is the spokesman of the Rafah Fisherman's Syndicate in the southern Gaza Strip. The syndicate represents around 450 local fishermen and its headquarters are on the beach just outside Rafah. This morning, however, Jamal and his crew are sitting under tarpaulin on the beach, drinking tea around a small driftwood fire. Conditions at sea are treacherous, and they're waiting for the weather to improve.

Gaza siege intensified after collapse of natural gas deal

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 02:46:05 PST

Israel claims its recent moves are retaliation for continued rocket attacks originating in Gaza that despite their consistency cause scant damage and few actual casualties. But the reasons may include motivations with roots back in 2000, when the British firm British Gas Group (BG) discovered proven natural gas reserves of at least 1.3 trillion cubic feet beneath Gazan territorial waters worth nearly $4 billion. Mark Turner writes.