The Israeli stock market saw a deep decline on Sunday: the TA-35 index dropped by 2.5%, and the TA-125 index fell by 2.4%. Bank indices decreased by 1.6%. The TA Technology index plunged by 3.7% as semiconductor stocks dragged it down – Nova and Camtek plunged by 11% after falling by 8.6% in New York on Friday. Tower dropped by 5.4%. Priortech, Camtek's parent company, fell by 9.8%.
Trade opening was delayed due to the drops in Nova and Camtek’s shares, which returned with a negative arbitrage of 11% from New York (they fell by 8.6% on Friday on the Nasdaq).
The Tel Aviv stock exchange will operate under tensions of escalating security developments with Iran and Hezbollah, and a possible hostage deal with Hamas.
The ongoing declines on Wall Street are further impacting the market's opening. On Friday, foreign indices fell again, led by tech stocks – with Intel collapsing by 26% following its reports and the announcement of mass layoffs. The Nasdaq plummeted by 2.4%, and the VIX (fear index) soared by 25%.
Equally worrying for investors is Warren Buffett cutting Berkshire Hathaway's substantial holdings in Apple by almost 50%. Buffett's holding company reduced its Apple shares from 789 million to 400 million during the second quarter.
Berkshire now holds a 2.6% stake in Apple worth $88 billion (after selling holdings worth $84 billion). Before the sale, Apple shares accounted for 40% of Berkshire's stock portfolio, a holding that likely became too large in Buffett's view.
On Thursday, the TA-35 went down by 1.4%, the TA-125 weakened by 1.5%, and TA Banks-5 fell by 2.9%, with Bank Leumi leading the declines in the sector by a 3.3% downturn. Over the week, the TA-35 fell by 3.3%, TA Real Estate plunged by 9.3%, and TA Oil and Gas index lost 7.3%.