1) Stanley Fisher Says Israel Is In Good Shape Economically
"Foreign companies are not exiting the country despite the financial crisis"

Israel continues to be in solid economic shape, according to Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fisher. Fisher emphasized that foreign companies are not exiting the country due to the financial crisis. He said that “The government’s fiscal policy has remained fairly stable and over the past six years, the results have been good.” He added that the Israeli banking system does not face the same banking challenges that confront the United States and other countries, partly thanks to tighter regulations.

Fisher indicated that while the growth rate for the 2nd half of 2008 will be lower than the first half, 2008’s growth will still be high. Fisher believes that Israel’s 2009 growth rate will be higher than most other industrialized economies.

Other leading economists have also been encouraged by Israel’s policy: Deutsche Bank analyst, Dan Harverd, has indicated that the global financial sector crisis is causing the Israeli banking system model to be copied worldwide leading to new regulations and ownership organization in banks in varied locations.
 

2) CNN Broadcast Historical Elections Moments Using Israeli Start-up Technology

When Wolf Blitzer, a reporter at CNN’s news desk in New York, interviewed newly elected US President Barack Obama, he was using technology introduced by SportVu, an Israeli start-up. By means of holographic presentation, the CNN reporter was able to send 3-Dimensional, 360 degree footage of Obama from Chicago to CNN’s Manhattan studio. Millions of viewers around the world were aware that Obama was still in Chicago, but SportVu’s cameras and computers projected an impressive image of the next president seemingly seated alongside the CNN reporter. SportVu’s non-invasive, real time, peripheral tracking system has been used to broadcast live sport events in Israel as well.

SportVu graduated from the Iris Ventures technological incubator in Sde Boker in 2005. Iris Ventures, formerly “Am Shay”, supports entrepreneurs by turning their advanced technology based ideas into high value economic products. Since its inception, the incubator has established over 40 start-up companies.
 

3) Israeli Universities Ranked Among World’S Best

The 2008 London Times Higher Education Supplement has ranked Israel’s Hebrew University among the world’s top 100 institutions of higher learning. The Times report placed the Hebrew University 93rd in its list of 200 top Universities. This is a significant improvement for the university from 128th place a year earlier.

The Technion-Israel Institute of Technology ranked 109th overall and tied for 25th place among the top 50 institutions of technology. The Technion was also ranked 31st in Natural Sciences (ahead of Johns Hopkins University, NYU and ranking German institutions). Tel Aviv University was listed 114th, an improvement from 151st place last year.

The selection parameters included rankings given by academics of other universities, the number of citations received, the number of academic reviews and the ratio of students to lecturers.
 

4) Phibro Animal Health Buys Teva’s Veterinary Business

Phibro Animal Health Corporation, a world leader in the medicated feed additives business, recently announced plans to purchase, at the beginning of 2009, Teva’s veterinary business unit, Abic Biological Labs, for approximately $47 million. Phibro Animal Health Corporation currently operates in Israel through its subsidiary, Koffolk Ltd.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, recently listed as the 10th largest company on the NASDAQ 100-Index, is the world’s leading generic pharmaceutical company and is ranked among the top 20 pharmaceutical companies worldwide.

Teva’s veterinary business unit in Israel develops, manufactures and markets products for poultry and large farm animals, selling to the Southeast Asia, Africa, Latin America and Eastern European markets. Their manufacturing facility in Israel employs approximately 90 people.
 

5) Israel At The Forefront Of Patents And Innovations
WIPO Report 2008: 1 patent out of a 100 in the world is Israeli

In the 2008 report of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on patent activity throughout the world, Israel placed 15th out of 138 nations in number of patents. In addition, in the 2008 WEF Competitiveness Report, Israel ranked 5th in utility patents, 3rd in the quality of scientific papers and 6th in overall innovations. The WEF report also placed Israel as 9th in the availability of scientists and engineers per capita. The US Patent Office granted 15,868 patents to Israel between 1977 and 2007, placing the country 14th in the world after the United States.
 

6) Oracle’s New Acquisition Includes Israel Based R&d Center

Primavera Software of Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, one of the largest independent providers of collaborative project, resource and portfolio management software solutions, was acquired recently by Oracle Corporation. Financial details were not disclosed. Primavera has more than 76,000 customers around the world.

Through this acquisition, Oracle gains control over Primavera’s important R&D center in Jerusalem which develops software solutions for portfolio management. With this acquisition, Oracle now has two Israeli development centers. Oracle is the world’s largest enterprise software company, with $22.43 billion in revenues for fiscal 2008.
 

7) Teva Pharmaceuticals Teams Up With Japan’s Kowa Company
Yoshihiro Miwa: "Kowa and Teva are creating a unique business model and a robust base in Japan’s generic pharmaceutical market.”

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries and Kowa Company of Japan announced the establishment of a generic pharmaceutical company in Japan. Teva-Kowa Pharma Co., Ltd. will seek to combine the marketing, research and development, manufacturing and distribution capabilities of each company to become a broad based supplier of high quality generic pharmaceutical products for the Japanese market and reach sales of $1 billion in 2015. Each company will have a 50% stake in Teva-Kowa Pharma which will become operational in 2009.

Japan is the second largest pharmaceutical market in the world, valued at approximately $80 billion. Kowa Company, established in 1894, is a multinational corporation with approximately 50 affiliated companies.

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries is among the top 20 pharmaceutical companies in the world and is the world’s leading generic pharmaceutical company.
 

8) HP Searches For The Next Breakthrough In Israel
Signs R&D Collaboration Agreement With Israeli Government

As part of The Global Enterprise R&D Cooperation Framework, Hewlett Packard has signed an agreement with the Office of the Chief Scientist (OCS) of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor to conduct joint R&D activities with Israeli companies whose technologies match HP’s strategic development programs.

Through the program, MNCs obtain access to large number of innovative technologies and reduce the risk hindered in R&D processes. Israeli startup companies, in turn, benefit by involving their future partner in the development stages and thereby boosting their chances of success.

HP is the 11th multinational to join the program, following in the footsteps of IBM, Alcatel, Coca Cola, Oracle, Deutsche Telkom, Microsoft, Merck, Renault –Nissan, Sun and GE, which have signed similar agreements with the OCS.

In recent years HP spent $4.5 billion to buy Israeli software support company, Mercury, as well as three Israeli printer manufacturers (i.e. Scitex Digital Printing, Indigo, and Nu Macroprinters). To date, the company has invested $6 billion in high-tech companies in Israel, where it currently employs 4,000 people.
 

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