Israel's economy improving

JERUSALEM, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz warned it is too early to say the economic crisis has ended, even though the situation is improving.

On Sunday, Israel's Central Bureau of Statistics said the gross domestic produce rose by 1 percent in annual terms in the second quarter compared with a 3.2 percent drop in the first quarter.

The bureau also said exports, which accounted for close to 45 percent of the GDP, had risen 5.8 percent in the second quarter, private consumption had gone up 4.4 percent and public consumption rose by 19.8 percent.

Steinitz said the statistics appear to be encouraging but it's too early to declare an end to the recession, Israeli newspapers said.

At a Sunday Cabinet meeting, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said the CBS statistics prove that the Israeli economy is improving and in a better situation than many other countries.