Israelis sharply changed their purchasing preference - the reason has been named

During the autumn holidays, Israelis preferred foreign trips over domestic shopping, which led to a drop in sales at clothing and footwear stores. The strengthening of the shekel and the weakening of the dollar made shopping abroad more worthwhile. In September, a record 1.23 million people left the country. Revenue at clothing stores fell by an average of 1.6%, and some chains reported a drop of 10%.

During the autumn Jewish holidays (from September 11 to October 3, 2026), Israelis sharply changed their consumer habits, preferring foreign trips over shopping inside the country. The strengthening of the shekel and the weakening of the dollar made shopping abroad significantly more worthwhile, which hit domestic sales, especially in clothing and footwear. According to data from the company RIS, which analyzed the revenue of 2,700 stores, sales in open-air shopping complexes fell by 2.6%, in large regional centers by 0.1%, and on average the decline was 1.6%. Some chains told the publication Calcalist about a 10% drop in revenue. In September, a record 1.23 million people left the country - 17% more than a year earlier, of whom 1.1 million flew by plane. The high cost of airline tickets and disruptions at the airport did not stop the flow of travelers. It was previously reported that card spending in September reached a record 53.252 billion shekels.