Since Israel currently has an interim government and parliament (the Knesset) has been dispersed for re-elections, Israel’s ability to narrow the gaps and return to the budget framework that the parliament had initially forecast is almost impossible according to senior Finance Ministry officials. On top of this, the re-elections means increased spending on elections that was also not budgeted in the original 2019 budget. Although Israel was able to meet its budget last year, this year, nearly a 4% deficit is anticipated in the budget and no amount of “stop-gap” measures are likely to cover this deficit. Please pray for Israel’s economy to blossom this year despite the increased government spending and reduced ability of the parliament to adjust the budget as needed.