The Hong Kong Jewellery and Gem Fair ended on Monday on an optimistic note for buyers and also for IDE President Yoram Dvash who returned with positive impressions for the world's largest diamond fair.
"This year's show, as compared with previous editions which were weak, saw very large numbers of visitors," said Dvash. "The lines at registration were very long and I was very pleased to see such big numbers of people in the aisles and walkways. The show is by far the biggest in the Far East especially, and in the world in general with visitors from all across the world. In addition to Indian visitors who are traditionally at the show in large numbers, you could see visitors from other countries in the Far East," he added.
He said the number of visitors on the opening and second day was far larger than usual. "On the first two days, the foot traffic was very strong in the diamond area. As is usual, it calmed down following the opening of the finished jewelry show. Sales were reasonable though not in proportion to the huge number of buyers attending and not of the level we saw in years gone by. But, in general, there's room for a lot of optimism due to the show."
During his visit to the show, President Dvash met with the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) President Ernie Blom and the Secretary-General Rony Unterman to discuss possible solutions to the issue of a lack of funding for the diamond business, possible new sources and the expansion of credit for diamantaires.
He also met with ALROSA President Andrey Zharkov and the Vice-President Andrey Polyakov where they discussed the impact of synthetic diamonds on the trade.
"Despite the challenges that we are facing, the feeling is that buyers are once showing faith in the market. They are returning and showing a lot of interest in goods – and that's a very positive sign for the future. The stability in polished prices in recent months is contributing to a rise in confidence among retailers and jewelry manufacturers and I hope they will buy goods as we approach the holiday season," Dvash concluded.
