The Israeli shekel sank as efforts faltered to negotiate a compromise over the government’s plan to weaken the judiciary.
(Bloomberg) — The Israeli shekel sank as efforts faltered to negotiate a compromise over the government’s plan to weaken the judiciary.
The currency weakened as much as 2.4% against the dollar, heading for the biggest drop on a closing basis since September, before trading down 1.3% at 3.61 at 1:18 p.m. local time on Wednesday. It had appreciated in recent days over reports a deal was close.
Israeli lawmakers were set to vote by Wednesday on members of the powerful judicial selection committee, which makes crucial bench appointments. The opposition said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may force a re-vote to delay a final decision.
The impasse suggests the bitter dispute over the power of Israel’s top judges is set to continue, with Netanyahu’s far-right coalition government seeking to reduce their independence. The plan sparked massive protests earlier this year, mostly by secular Israelis in the center and on the left who argue that the proposals would undermine the country’s democracy.
Read More: Why Israel Is Bitterly Split by a Judiciary Overhaul: QuickTake
Opposition leader Yair Lapid accused Netanyahu of sabotaging the talks and leading to their collapse. Another top opposition figure, Benny Gantz, said if the vote on the committee is postponed, his National Unity party would quit the negotiations.
“The shekel strengthened last week because the market hoped and expected that the judicial appointment committee would be agreed upon by today’s deadline,” Ronen Menachem, the chief market economist at United Mizrahi Tefahot Bank, said. The market’s reaction to the talks faltering was “immediate.”
(Updates with updates currency in second paragraph.)
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