The normalisation of terror: the response of Israel's stock market to long periods of terrorism

Man-made disasters such as acts of terrorism may affect a society's resiliency and sensitivity to prolonged physical and psychological stress. The Israeli Tel Aviv stock market TA-100 Index was used as an indicator of reactivity to suicide terror bombings. After accounting for factors such as world market changes and attack severity and intensity, the analysis reveals that although Israel's financial base remained sensitive to each act of terror across the entire period of the Second Intifada (2000-06), sustained psychological resilience was indicated with no apparent overall market shift. In other words, we saw a 'normalisation of terror' following an extended period of continued suicide bombings. The results sug gest that investors responded to less transitory global market forces, indicating sustained resilience and long-term market confidence. Future studies directly measuring investor expectations and reactions to man-made disasters, such as terrorism, are warranted. Language: en