The fastest Covid-19 vaccination rollout in the world is drawing investors to Israel, making its stock market one of the top performers in 2021.
Israel’s benchmark TA-125 stock index has gained nearly 6% this year in dollar terms, outperforming both the S&P 500 and the eurozone’s Euro Stoxx Index. Last year, the TA-125 didn’t fare as well as either of those gauges, rising just 4.3% in dollar terms.
Investors are betting Israel’s widespread rollout of Covid-19 vaccines will put it among the forerunners for a post-pandemic economic recovery. The small country—whose roughly nine million population is about the size of New York City’s—has vaccinated nearly a fourth of its people in just under a month.
Money managers globally are seeking new investment opportunities after a sharp rally in 2020 left many U.S. stocks, particularly in the technology and media sectors, with rich valuations.
This year, they are betting that Covid-19 inoculations will accelerate the global economic recovery. Their attention is shifting to stocks that are closely linked to economic performance, such as banking and energy, and to sectors and markets that have underperformed and are considered cheap.
