The official value of the shekel declined by an average of .304 percent in mixed trading on Thursday against most of the currencies on the Bank of Israel's foreign exchange list. The United States dollar was fixed at NIS 3.489, up .722 percent from Wednesday's rate, a rise matched by the Egyptian pound, which was set at .5862 shekels. The Jordanian dinar rose .83 percent to NIS 4.9228 and 10 Lebanese pounds brought .0231 shekels, up .873 percent.
The Euro rose .216 percent to NIS 4.9734 while the pound sterling was set at 5,7017 shekels, up .41 percent. The Japese yen fell 2.742 percent, with 100 yen buying NIS 4.3705, as the government intervened stop the rise of the currency to help exports as the country recovers from March's earthquake. The Canadian dollar was set at NIS 3.584, down .923 percent with an eye on the yen and other currencies, and the Australian dollar was set at 3.6987 shekels, down .956 percent, amid global economic concerns.