Israel Trade Deficit Reaches 10.7 Billion NIS in May 2026

Israel's trade deficit in goods totaled 10.7 billion NIS in May 2026, according to official data from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) released yesterday. During the month, goods exports from the country amounted to 17.5 billion NIS, while the value of goods imports reached 28.2 billion NIS. Trend data for March-May 2026 indicates a significant slowdown in international procurement and shipping activities, with declines across all import categories, led by a sharp drop in imports of investment goods and industrial raw materials.

Analysis of cumulative data for the first five months of the year (January-May 2026) presents a complex picture for the Israeli supply chain: total imports during this period stood at 138.0 billion NIS, a decrease compared to 144.1 billion NIS in the corresponding period last year. Conversely, total exports in these months amounted to 77.2 billion NIS, compared to 84.3 billion NIS in January-May 2025. The cumulative trade deficit in goods since the beginning of the year has crossed the 60 billion NIS threshold, totaling 60.8 billion NIS.

In the import sector, trend data for March-May 2026 reveals a substantial slowdown in business equipment procurement. Imports of investment goods (excluding ships and aircraft) recorded a sharp 18.1% drop in annual terms, following a 5.7% increase in the previous quarter (December 2025 - February 2026). Simultaneously, imports of raw materials (excluding diamonds and energy materials), a key indicator of factory activity and domestic production levels, decreased by 2.4% annually. Within this, imports of raw food products saw the steepest decline in this group—a 22.4% plunge in annual terms (averaging approximately 2.1% per month).

Import data by economic classification shows that raw materials constituted the main share of imports in May, accounting for 44% of total activity. Consumer goods represented 23%, imports of machinery, equipment, and land transport vehicles for investment took a 20% share, while the remaining 13% was divided between imports of diamonds, energy materials, ships, and aircraft.

On the positive side, the Israeli export sector shows selectivity and focused growth in knowledge-intensive industries. According to trend data, exports from medium-high technology industries (including chemicals and refined petroleum products, machinery and equipment, and medical and optical instruments) recorded an impressive 10.3% annual increase in March-May 2026, following a 6.3% annual increase in the preceding quarter. This rise supported the stability of industrial exports, despite the general declines recorded in international shipment volumes during the first half of the year.