Palestinian Gross Domestic Product (GDP) declined by 12 percent in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, said the Palestinian Monetary Authority and the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics in a joint statement.

The Monetary Authority and the Bureau of Statistics stated that most economic activities shrunk this year, which led to a significant decrease in the per capita income, noting that the Palestinian economy witnessed a decline of around four percent in 2020 compared to 2019.

"The decline deepened with the impacts of the pandemic, which made the Palestinian government take a number of emergency measures, including partial and total lockdowns," the statement highlighted.

"Israel’s withholding of Palestinian tax revenues collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (PA) for about six months also had a negative impact on the economy," it added. "With those revenues constituting 70 percent of the total Palestinian income and being the main source of income to cover the government’s expenditure."

Moreover, it underscored that the volume of trade exchange to and from Palestine reached $10 billion in 2020 with a decline of 10% compared to 2019.

It is worth mentioning that over 66,000 employees lost their jobs this year, leading to an increase in the unemployment rate which reached 27.8 percent.

Source : Safa