Behind the Headlines: Economists May Flinch, but Israelis Take Living Cost Rise As Expected

Economists may have been taken aback when an unexpectedly sharp rise in the August consumer price index was announced Sunday. But not Israeli consumers.

They seem to be coping well despite the chorus of groans and complaints every time prices inch up.

That was evident Monday at the Arlosoroff Supersol in north-central Tel Aviv, a branch of a nationwide supermarket chain. A day after the Central Bureau of Statistics announced that inflation was up 2.5 percent in August, the highest rise for that month in five years, customers were pushing shopping carts piled high with food and other products.

And those customers are not in the high-income bracket, said the store’s manager, who identified himself as Kobi. He professed not to understand “how a normal family manages” since, according to the government, a family now needs an income of over $1,800 a month to survive.

The Bureau of Statistics defines an average family as two adults and two school-age children who live in an urban apartment and do not enjoy the tax breaks or cheap mortgages available in development areas.

But customer Dina Horowitz thinks its income projection is on the low side.

“That’s a joke,” she exclaimed. “I have two children, both my husband and I have good jobs and good salaries, and although we pay no mortgage and no rent and we earn more than $2,600 monthly together, we don’t live to excess.”

Horowitz said her 10-year-old younger child wears many of her 12-year-old sister’s hand-me-down clothes.

The family eats meat two or three times a week and has not been abroad in five years. “So how does the average family manage?” she asked, shaking her head.

‘A ROOF OVER OUR HEADS’

The supermarket was especially crowded Monday with people shopping for Yom Kippur, which begins at sundown Tuesday.

But Yom Kippur is a fast day. “You would expect less food to be sold before a fast,” said Kobi, pointing to the overflowing shopping carts.

“At least half of these people are going to fast for over 24 hours, so why do they buy so much food?” he asked.

At a minimarket in southern Tel Aviv, customers said they were buying less. “Not that I believe it’s going to make life easier and the overdraft smaller, but at least I’m trying,” Mazal Ouhana told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

Ouhana is buying one chicken for the holiday instead of two. She will use bouillon cubes to make the soup traditionally eaten after the fast.

Two of her four children are in the army. She has a part-time secretarial job. “Because my husband is self-employed, there are some things we can put on the company and that way save some money,” she said.

Ouhana considers herself lucky. “As long as my family and friends are healthy and happy and there is no war, I’m happy. So what if I didn’t buy myself anything new for the holidays. My kids have new clothes and we have food on the table and a roof over our heads.”