The Israel Cabinet approved last night a foreign currency budget of $587, 000, 000 for the fiscal year which begins tomorrow.
The most surprising aspect of the new budget is the variations in expected income as compared to previous years. The document provides for an anticipated increase of visible and invisible exports to a total of $216, 000, 000, an increase of about 20 percent. Similarly, restitution payments by West Germany to individual Israeli citizens is expected to Jump 50 percent to a high of $75, 000, 000.
However, other major sources are expected to fall off substantially, including: German reparations, down eight percent to $70, 000, 000; and income from Jewish sources, lower by 17 percent to $120, 000, 000.
In the expenditures column, consumer imports will be cut eight percent to $184, 000,000, capital goods imports will be slashed 14 percent to $140, 000, 000 but raw materials for processing and re-export will be increased by 20 percent to $80, 000, 000. Repayment of loans will double to a total of $25, 000, 000 and a new agricultural stockpiling program will cost $22, 000,000.
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