Israel budget deficit rises to 6.9% of GDP due to war costs

Israel posted a budget deficit of 19.2 billion shekels ($5.2 billion) in December, the Finance Ministry said on Monday, citing high expenses to finance the wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The deficit for all of last year was 6.9 per cent of gross domestic product, compared with 4.2 per cent in 2023. Nonetheless, the December figure was the lowest since March after reaching 8.5 per cent in the 12 months to September and falling to 7.7 per cent in November.