(IsraelNN.com) The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange dropped sharply early Sunday but regained much of the lost ground by day's end. The Tel Aviv 100 Index was down 4.6% to 683.5, after trading as low as 645. The Tel Aviv 25 Index was down 3.8% to 767.6, after dropping as low as 728 (8.6% less than the starting figure) during the day.

The Tel Tech Index was down 11.8% to 150, and the Tel Bond 20 was up 0.3% to 199, after reaching a loss of more than 3% earlier in the day.

Prof. Shmuel Hauser of the Kiryat Ono Academic Center cautioned against hysteria: "Even if we expect the market condition to be worse than it is now," he said, "we should not panic. It's part of the cycle that we've had over the years." He estimated that growth will go down and, inflation will go up as part of the long-term effect of the financial crisis, but stressed that "panic will make things worse."

Trading in options was halted.

Israel Chemicals, which fell 19.1% last week, rose 6.6% by late afternoon Sunday. International fertilizer stocks rose by an average of 5% in the last three sessions.

Uncertainty in the international financial sector also affected trading in Israel's banks, with Bank Hapoalim down 1.18% and Bank Leumi off 2.16% in the late afternoon.