Exports ...

I tend to freak out about things. For instance, the anti-Israel BDS movement scares the crap out of me. These people use the language of peace and justice as a means to destroy Israel, essentially to wage war against the world's sole Jewish state. It is truly perverse.

But every now and again I see something that helps me calm down. The latest was a piece of economic news out of Israel. It seems that despite all the anger and tension between Israel and Turkey, Israel still managed to increase its exports there.

Trade with Turkey is still higher than in 2009, even after the flotilla incident. Israeli exports to Turkey in July were 57% higher than the $81.6 million in July 2009, and imports from Turkey were 1.4% higher than the $136 million in July last year.

This does not bode well for those who aim to impose a truly effective boycott regime against Israel. Turkey would certainly be an easy target for the boycott Israel movement, with its Muslim population, sympathy for the Palestinians, and new found anger at Israel. However, the tensions have had no perceptible impact on trade between the countries.

While I would like to chalk this up to the heart felt affection the Turks have for us, this probably has nothing to do with it. The real reason probably has more to do with the fact that Israeli businesses aren't easily identifiable. Additionally, many of the largest Israeli companies don't sell their products directly to consumers.

A good example is Amdocs, which creates billing software. One of their big clients is AT&T. Essentially, in order to effectively punish the Israeli company, you would have to first boycott an American one. This is one example, but it speaks to the globalized and highly integrated nature of the Israeli economy.