Boycott on Israel helped Arabs revive their economies: Analysis
Arab countries found an opportunity to rely more on their domestic economic resources after they boycotted products and services linked to supporters of Israel amid the regime's brutal war on Gaza, an analysis says.
The Lebanon-based Al Binaa newspaper said in a commentary published on Saturday that the popular ban on using foreign products manufactured by pro-Israeli companies has allowed Arab companies to increase their share in local markets.
It said many Arab countries are now filled with home-made products that have replaced foreign brands.
Al Binaa’s commentator Talib al-Soheil said that the boycott on Israel and its supporters was a gift to the Arabs that enabled them to change their consumer culture.
Soheil said Arabs had become accustomed to using Western products only because they were more attractive and were present in every advertisement.
He said national industries have been revived in many Arab and Muslim countries, including in Lebanon, where customers have replaced McDonald's and Coca-Cola with domestic brands.
The commentator said the boycott has also resulted in more jobs for the youth in Arab countries as companies are expanding their domestic workforce and even recruit local workers of foreign companies to respond to growing demand for their products and services.
“The boycott on Israel is an opportunity for us to think, work, expand and produce,” said Soheil.
People in Arab and Muslim countries started to boycott major Western brands weeks after the Israeli regime launched an all-out war on Gaza in early October.
Many of those brands have admitted in their quarterly reports that the boycotts have seriously affected their financial situation, especially in the West Asia region where they used to run major businesses before the Gaza war.
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