Main reports: The PA plans to officially bid for observer status at the next WTO ministerial meeting on 21-22 October. All 153 members of the WTO have to approve the accession in a vote. If successful the PA will be able to observe all WTO meetings; one of the interim steps towards full membership.
An injection of $15m and JD 10m is needed to resolve Jordanian dinar and US dollar liquidity problems in the Gaza Strip. NIS 30m of damaged notes have been replaced recently and a transfer of NIS 300m is expected shortly.
Jordan Commercial Bank plans to expand and open a branch in every West Bank governorate. The expansion coincides with new PMA requirements that each bank must have at least $35m in capital.
PalTrade has launched a new programme to provide training in marketing from international experts. The programme will benefit 140 Palestinian companies and has specific components tailored towards the food processing and ICT sectors.