DUBAI TO BECOME 2ND LARGEST DIAMOND TRADING HUB WITHIN A YEAR, DMCC CHIEF SAYS

Dubai – currently the fourth largestdiamond trading center in the world – is on its way to becoming the second-largest diamond trading hub within a year, the executive chairman of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre said Monday.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, attending the 5th Arabian Business Forum, spoke to the Arabian Business news website, saying he believed he would see diamond trade through Dubai continue to grow.

Bin Sulayem noted that the growth of Dubai’s industry depended on bank’s willingness to extend credit to its diamantaires.

The DMCC chief said that while Israel was a “very strong competitor,” it was not “as relevant as it used to be,” observing that Israel was a center of trade rather than of diamond production.

-The Israeli Diamond Industry

IGI Dubai conducts Gemology workshop for Afghan Jewelers

IGI recently conducted a practical course for DAI / ASMED, a USAID project aimed at the future development of the Gemstone Industry in Afghanistan, at the IGI School of Gemology in Dubai.

For the first time ever, Afghan students travelled abroad in order to acquire improved gemological knowledge about colored stones. Afghan professionals want to develop a better understanding of the quality of the stones they extract in their country. The workshop was mainly attended by students who wish to become gemologists.

The gemology workshop focused on the identification of gem material treatments and synthrmalietic stones which are mi ned in the region. The workshop demonstrated usage of equipment like refractometer, polariscope, microscope and dichroscope to determine the characteristics of various gemstones.

“The workshop for the students and professionals from the gemstone industry in Afghanistan was extremely positive and productive. With sufficient investment in knowledge and equipment, Afghanistan has the potential to become a major supplier of gemstones in the region”, said Mr Nico D’Haemer, managing director, IGI Dubai.

Afghanistan has been blessed with a wide variety of precious and semi-precious stones with 73 documented records of mines, deposits, and occurrences. Most operations today are small‐scale, but th e potential undoubtedly exists for the development of a significant precious stone mining industry in Afghanistan. Some of the stones discovered there are tourmaline, morganite, aquamarine, spodoumene, lapis lazuli and spinel.

-Diamond News

India's Luxury Market Likely to Grow 20% Next Year

India's luxury market is likely to grow 20 percent in the year ahead driven by increased digital interaction between retail and consumers, global exposure and brand consciousness, according to the CII-A.T. Kearney Report on Indian luxury. The country is expected to remain insulated from the "impending global downturn" and the investment is likely to continue in the India luxury space, the study said.

The luxury market in India grew 20 percent year on year this past year, reaching $5.8 billion, the report estimated. It noted that jewelry, electronics, cars, stationery, fine dining and travel segments outperformed during the past year, with growth of between 22 percent and 40 percent. The jewelry segment experienced a growth rate of 30 percent due to increasing prices of gold and diamonds.

The report said that apparel and accessories, watches and personal care also recorded good growth of between 24 percent and 30 percent. Only the realty and yachts segments lagged this past year, it added.

The report analyzed that luxury has gone beyond Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore to Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune. Similarly north Mumbai and Gurgaon are two new distinct catchments that have emerged.

However, the key challenge still remains: Effectively reaching the target consumer. It said that talent and infrastructure remains a challenge for the Industry. The regulatory structure has also largely remained unchanged over the past year, with the recent news about 100 percent foreign direct investment (FDI) in single brand retail creating hope amongst global brands.

The report observed that consumers have less reservations towards buying luxury goods than in the past. It also cited price parity with Dubai and Singapore being attempted for goods as the need for ''Indianization'' is being realized by players, and such efforts are visible for the apparel, watches and automobile industries. Retailers and brands are making money at the store level, but now they need to find ways to invest further and gain higher margins. The companies would benefit from choosing smaller store formats and by keeping rent and overhead in check, the report added.
-Rapaport