(JNS) The Israeli economy, as measured by GDP, grew at a healthy rate of 6.8 percent on an annualized basis in the second quarter of 2022, the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) said on Sunday.

That followed a 2.7 percent drop in GDP year on year in the first quarter.

The Israeli economy has grown faster since the second quarter of 2021 than any other OECD member county that has reported results to date.

During that 12-month span, Israel’s GDP increased by 7.4 percent, compared to 7.1 percent in Portugal, 6.3 percent in Spain, 6.2 percent in Austria, 5.4 percent in the Netherlands, 4.1 percent in Sweden, 3 percent in South Korea, and barely 1.7 percent in Germany and the United States.

“The return to routine in the second quarter led to the rise in GDP,” the CBS said, adding that hospitality and air travel services, as well as tourism from other countries, contributed to the rise in GDP in the April-June period.