Israel easily has potential to rank among world’s ten leading economies, according to prime minister
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the Jewish state’s economy on Wednesday, saying it could eventually rank among the world’s ten top economies.
"We can easily be among the world's 10 leading economies. We need to continue in this direction; it is never static but always needs to continue to improve," the prime minister said during a Finance Ministry event.
Netanyahu stressed Israel’s prominent role in the fields of artificial intelligence and cybernetics, despite its small size.
“Our knowledge-intensive economy, including 20% of AI start-ups and even more in cybernetics, makes us second in the world with 1/1,000 of the world's population.”
Netanyahu assessed that the Jewish nation continues to be an important economic asset to Washington and the Western world.
"Israel's status as an economic asset to the US and Western countries is rising all the time. While it depends on various developments, its basis is to polish the economy and make it stronger and more competitive. Your mission is to ensure the future of Israel," he told the attendees.
Netanyahu is widely considered the most economy-savvy prime minister in Israel’s modern history.
This was not the first time he stated that Israel could easily be ranked among the world’s leading economies.
In 2005, Netanyahu claimed that the Jewish state would place itself among the world’s richest countries in terms of GDP per capita within a decade. However, in 2015, Israel remained far from that ranking.
In 2021, Forbes magazine ranked Israel among the top 20 leading economies in terms of GDP per capita. While Israel's gross domestic product currently exceeds Japan’s, the reality is more complex. Israel has a significantly higher proportion of impoverished people than most advanced economies, especially among the ultra-Orthodox Jewish and Arab-Israeli populations. In addition, Israel’s real purchasing power per capita is stymied by very high costs of living.
The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.
