Israel’s war on Gaza already hitting regional economies: IMF chief

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia – – AFP

The raging war between Israel and Hamas is already battering the economies of nearby countries, the managing director of the International Monetary Fund told a Saudi investor forum on Wednesday.

Israel’s neighbours are feeling the effects, especially those that rely on tourism, Kristalina Georgieva said at the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in the Saudi capital Riyadh.

“You look at the neighbouring countries -– Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan –- there the channels of impact are already visible,” Georgieva told an audience that included global banking elites.

Israel has subjected the besieged, impoverished Gaza Strip to relentless air strikes and a near-total land, sea and air blockade of Gaza, where the health ministry says 5,791 people have been killed in the war so far.

Georgieva spoke one day after Wall Street titans told the forum that the war could deal a heavy blow to the world economy, especially if it draws in other countries.

“What we see is more jitters in what has already been an anxious world,” Georgieva said.

“You have tourism-dependent countries — uncertainty is a killer for tourist inflows,” she said, describing the potential economic cost for countries in the region before listing specific risks.

“Investors are going to be shy to go to that place. Cost of insurance — if you want to move goods, they go up. Risks of even more refugees in countries that are already accepting more.”