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Finance minister touts Israel's relative economic success

Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz touted Israel's economic success in the face of a global recessions, especially among Western countries, during his address at the 12th Annual Herzliya Conference.
The success of Israel is evident in its low unemployment, Steinitz said adding that the average "salary, compared to the US and Europe, went up in 2011 and 2012."
Steinitz said Israel's low unemployment was having a positive effect on the economic situation of the nation's families and citizens.
The finance minister pointed out that Israel's credit rating, if included in a list of Western European countries, was the only credit rating to go up in the same period that most European countries saw their credit ratings dropped.
Steinitz also said he was pleased with Israel's debt-to-GDP ration, which was hovering around 74 percent.
"We managed to decrease it," he said. "We preserved our position at a time when very few countries were able to do that."