The results of a census of Palestine industries, undertaken by the government in 1928, have just been published. Of especial interest is the comparison of the number of industries which existed in Palestine before the war and after. Before the war there were only 166 clothing shops, while in 1928 there were 647. The number of food shops rose from 178 before the war to 295 after the war. The number of printing shops rose from 27 to 76 and lumber factories from 90 to 307. Some 73% of all the industries were conducted by individuals, 23% as partnerships and only 1% as limited corporations.
Throughout Palestine there were in 1928 only 12 industries (besides public works) which employed more than 100 people, and only 15 which employed between 50 and 100 workers. In most of the shops the owners themselves worked without hiring any one.
The number of employed women in 1928 in Palestine was 1,764, that is, less than 10% of the entire number of workers in the country; the number of employed boys and girls under 16 years of age was 1,086.
Nearly 70% of all industries made use only of manual labor, 16% used motor power and 14% used animal power. Altogether there were in May, 1928, 3,505 industrial shops and factories, in which 17,955 persons were employed. The capital invested in all of these undertakings was estimated at 3,500,000 pounds and their products were valued at 3,886,000 pounds. Nine establishments possessed a capital of more than 50,000 pounds.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
