Israel's economy grew at a slower-than-expected rate in the second quarter due to a drop in exports, but gains in consumer spending and industrial investment helped growth rebound from the prior three months. Gross domestic product grew an annualised 2.7 percent in the April-June period, according to Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) data on Wednesday, below economists' forecast in a Reuters poll of 3.2 percent growth.
The CBS revised down its first-quarter GDP growth estimate to an annualised 0.6 percent, its slowest pace in nearly two years, from 1.4 percent. For the first half of 2017, Israel's economy grew an annualised 2.1 percent.