ISRAEL: AHORA VAN POR EL BANCO CENTRAL

AM | @agumack

"Central bank independence has been called into question" — Galit Altstein

Sin prisa y sin pausa, continúa el golpe institucional de Benjamin Netanyahu y sus aliados. Tras la 'reforma' judicial, ahora van por el banco central de Israel. El 'modelo' de esta desgracia es el kirchnero-peronismo. Como en la Argentina, la independencia judicial y la independencia del banco central —pilares de los contrapesos institucionales— están bajo ataque (1, 2).

This is an unprecedented foray into the country's monetary policy [... ] alongside the ruling coalition's —the most religious Israel ever had— plan to weaken the power of judges [...] Netanyahu's cabinet is putting the independence of institutions at the center of public debate. Central bank governor Amir Yaron has been described as "a savage who has sabotaged the economy and should be fired". Monetary policy should reflect their populist goals.

Karnit Flug, Yaron's predecessor and vice-president of Israel's Democracy Institute: "There is, undoubtedly, an increasing fear that institutions which the government deems too independent might be weakened. All 10 governors who have held the office to this day were professionals with no political indentity and it is crucial this remains the case. 

Central bank independence has been called into question from Brazil to Turkey so politicians take a swipe at policymakers whose priority comes into conflict with their own. In the United States, former president Donald Trump regularly castigated Fed chairman Jay Powell for not cutting borrowing costs aggressively enough. In Israel, encroaching on the central bank has taken the shape of political attacks and legislative moves that could influence interest rates (*).

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Debilitar los contrapesos institucionales tendrá un impacto negativo desde el punto de vista del costo del capital y —en consecuencia— sobre la calificación crediticia del país. Según Moody's Investors Service: "A deterioration of Israel's governance poses a threat to the sovereign rating a A1". Finalmente, vale la pena notar el típicamente demagógico argumento de los miembros de la coalición de gobierno: "Government power is in the hands of unelected bureacrats [...] Yaron should stand trial by the public". Muy peronista y decadente todo.

Checks and balances, anyone?

(*) Galit Altstein: "Israeli firebrands are turning on central bank after judiciary", Bloomberg, 14 de julio de 2023.

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