Following a global trend to try and cut costs and not lay anyone off, Israeli cutting tool maker Iscar has announced that it too will switch to a 4 day work week. The move comes as orders have slowed down, especially from the US auto industry.

According to Globes: “Iscar, which manufactures cutting tools for the vehicle and aviation industries, is taking a range of cost-cutting measures to cope with the plunge in orders from customers, especially US carmakers. Iscar chairman Eitan Wertheimer told “Globes”, “If we have no alternative, we’ll lay off people, but our goal is to avoid this and to adjust sales to the long term. This crisis is going to be tough.”

In the past Buffett has spoken about how well the Iscar investment has been. It looks like even the best investments can’t withstand the global rout.

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Aaron Katsman
www.IsraelNewsletter.com

While Morgan Stanley(MS) decides whether to grant Israel ‘developed’ country status for its’ global indices, this decision will confirm what many savvy investors already know; that Israel is a very hot investment destination. Over the weekend none other than Warren Buffett spoke about his Israeli purchase. Buffett said on Saturday that the company’s acquisition last year of the Israeli firm Iscar has worked out better than expected. Buffett said that he had very high expectations when Berkshire struck the deal, and that the metal-cutting-tool maker has “exceeded that in every way.” “It’s been a dream acquisition,” he said.

We all are familiar with the stats. Israel sports the most companies traded on Nasdaq of any country except the US, the billions of venture capital money that continues to flow in, the educated workforce, and I could go on and on. Not to mention the estimated GDP growth of 3.2% for ‘08, a number that most western nations would love to have. What’s so impressive is that all of this has been accomplished in such a short time. What started out as a dream by the country’s founders, has, I am sure, exceeded their expectations.

As Israel looks forward to the next 60 years, I think it’s safe to say that we can all expect more incredible innovation, as well as Israel becoming even more mainstream as an investment destination.

Disclosure: Author’s fund has no position in any other stock mentioned as of 5/5/08.

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Aaron Katsman is Managing Editor of the Israel Opportunity Investor newsletter. He is lead portfolio manager for the Israel Growth Portfolio and Managing Director of America Israel Investment Associates, LLC. For more information, go to www.israelnewsletter.com or call 1-888-327-6179, or email aaron@profile-financial.com.

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In an article on Bloomberg today, billionaire investor Warren Buffett allayed concerns about a credit crunch, though he didn’t have the same calming effect when discussing the decline in the U.S. dollar.

Funds are available and can be borrowed inexpensively, said Buffett when addressing a crowd in Toronto. And without policy change, the U.S. dollar is likely to continue to fall during the next decade, said the master investor.

While Buffett isn’t making outright bets on currencies, he does hold the Brazilian real. Buffet is looking to make international investments via his investment vehicle, Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A), in part to hedge his exposure to the U.S. currency.

The company made its first non-U.S. acquisition in 2006, when it paid $4 billion for 80 percent of Israel-based Iscar Metalworking Cos., a family-owned maker of industrial tools, said the same Bloomberg article.

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