The prices of Israeli stocks and bonds have dropped, and many companies closed their doors on Sunday, following the killing of hundreds of Israelis by armed members of the Palestinian resistance movement "Hamas" and the abduction of several others whose numbers are still unknown.

The two main indices of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (TA-125) and (TA-35) fell by up to seven percent, and the prices of government bonds decreased by up to three percent in an initial market reaction to the deadliest attack on Israel in decades.

Even though the foreign exchange market was closed on Sunday, the shekel was already at its weakest level this year due to the government's controversial plan regarding judicial reforms.

Jonathan Katz, chief economist at Leader Capital Markets, told Reuters, "This round of violence is expected to be longer and more intense than previous rounds, and it is clear that it will have a larger negative impact on the economy and the public budget."

"It is likely that the shekel will weaken sharply tomorrow, and we see a strong possibility that the Bank of Israel will sell foreign currencies at some point."

Armed members of Hamas attacked Israeli towns yesterday, Saturday, resulting in the deaths of at least 400 Israelis before abducting dozens of hostages and returning to Gaza.

Israel responded with air strikes on Hamas targets in Gaza.

Gaza militants also launched thousands of rockets at Israel, with some reaching Tel Aviv, prompting airlines to suspend their flights to and from Israel.

Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich stated that he has instructed the heads of the departments at the ministry to quickly provide the necessary budgets to manage the war.

Air travel disruption

American airline Delta stated that its flights from Israel to New York and Atlanta were canceled until Monday, while United Airlines said that "future operations at the airport will be suspended until conditions allow for a resumption." Air India announced that its flights to and from Tel Aviv would be suspended until October 14.

Canadian airline Air Canada also temporarily halted its flights, coordinating with the Canadian government regarding the resumption of services.