Israel Finance Minister Eliezer Kaplan denied last night that inflationary tendencies exist in the Jewish state or that the government is considering a currency devaluation. Mr. Kaplan made this statement prior to the opening of the special conference of Israel Government and Jewish Agency leaders and a delegation of American cusiness and communal leaders.
The Finance Minister rovesled that approximately five percent of deposits were withdrawn from banks during the month of August, amounting to about $19,000,000. He declared that this sum increased the gold price “unjustifiably and unreasonably” and those persons who rushed to stores to buy up large quantities of goods would lose a “good part of their money.” He also disclosed that the government had allocated about $225,000,000 for immigration, absorption and colonization and that about $140,000,000 had already been spent by June of this year.
Foreign Minister Moshe Sharett told a press conference that the consultations which opened here will not embrace the financial crisis but will instead help the government draw up a long-term policy of immigration and absorption.
Earlier, Dr. Nahum Goldmann, chairman of the American section of the Jewish-Agency, declared that the consultations will not deal with Zionist affairs. He pointed out that the relations between the Agency and the government were decided at the last meeting of the Zionist Actions Committee.
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