A record number of 3,526 exhibitors from 48 countries — the
most since the fair was launched in 1983 — crowded the 1.4 million square feet
of show space at the two exhibition venues of the Hong Kong Jewellery and Gem
Fair. The atmosphere at the fair was upbeat and busy, and while some exhibitors
expressed disappointment with total sales, most exhibitors looked relaxed and
said business had been average or good.
“The show was better than expected, especially after the
past few quiet
months, and all kinds of goods were sold,” said Michal
Gordon-Keret, managing director of the Hong Kong office of the Israel Diamond
Institute (IDI). Around 100 IDI members exhibited at the fair. “Buyers mainly came
from India, China and Hong Kong,” she added.
Hong Kong companies had the biggest presence with 1,383
booths, followed by Thailand with 383, China with 233, the U.S. with 204 and
Italy with 187.
Diamonds and gems were exhibited in Asia-World Expo
September 19 to 23, while finished jewelry was exhibited in the Hong Kong
Convention & Exhibition Centre September 21 to 25, and was still ongoing at
press time. The fair attracted more than 400 diamond company exhibitors, making
it the largest diamond pavilion in the world, according to the fair organizers.
Diamond jewelry made up the bulk of the exhibits in the
diamond pavilion, accounting for almost 13 percent, followed by loose diamonds,
with
11 percent, colored gemstone jewelry, with 9 percent, loose colored
gemstones, with 9 percent and pearl jewelry, with 7 percent. All figures are
preliminary as of September 24.
The fair, in its 30th year, is timed each year for
September. This allows buyers to stock up before the key gift-giving holiday season
that begins at year’s end and encompasses Christmas, New Year’s, the Lunar New
Year and Valentine’s Day.
Retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers comprised about 18
percent each of the exhibitors, with importers accounting for another 13
percent and exporters 10 percent. By the end of the fifth day of the fair, the
total number of visitors to both venues had reached 99,257.
Almost half the visitors came from outside Hong Kong,
according to the breakdown of visitor information available at press time. Hong
Kong buyers made up just over 28 percent of visitors, followed closely by
Mainland China, with almost 28 percent, and India, at 6 percent. Visitors from
the U.S, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, Korea, the Philippines and Indonesia made up
the rest of the top ten spots.
Wholesale exhibitors said business at the fair was down by
nearly
50 percent or more from 2011, but that 2011 was an amazingly good year.
“We’ve been around for more than 100 years and have never seen anything like
2011,” said a representative of IGC Group from Antwerp. He added that trading
on September 23, the last day of the loose gems fair, started out slow but he
was expecting — and hoping — traffic and business would pick up later in the
day. “There’s a feeling that people are waiting until the last moment to strike
a bargain.”
Business is “upside down” compared with 2011, agreed Raymond
Ng, director of Yokee Hong Diamonds, a Hong Kong–based dealer. Ng said he
expected to lose money at the fair because he had bought his stock in 2011when
prices were high and was now forced to sell for less. “People are looking for
big discounts. If I sell at a low price, I can sell a lot. Every year, there
are more and more exhibitors,” he said.
Ng was not alone in complaining that the fair had become too
big.
Alon Garty of Windiam Hong Kong, a Belgium-based company, said that a
growing number of exhibitors were flying in from overseas to participate in the
fair, and offering cheap prices to make quick sales before flying out again,
creating tough competition for locally based dealers.
Ashit Shah of Hong Kong–based Diasqua, whose large booth
occupied a prime position in one of the halls, said that the number of
exhibitors had grown exponentially in the last decade. “Ten years ago, there
were 500 booths and 5,000 customers. Now, there are 5,000 booths and 500
customers,” he said.
Mainland Chinese buyers bought less than usual at the fair.
Garty said some regular buyers hadn’t shown up, while others were buying 50
percent less. “Mainland Chinese buyers are asking for more and more discounts,”
said Daniel Wong of Hong Kong wholesalers Simplex Diam Ltd. “It’s very hard to
do.”
Another round of U.S. economic interventions, known as
quantitative easing, has had a positive effect on sentiment, according to some.
Kanhaiya Agrawal, executive director of the Mumbai-based Saraff Group, said he
felt the mood in Asian economies such as India, the Philippines and Thailand
was picking up thanks to more positive news from the U.S.
Moves by the Federal Reserve in the U.S. meant there was
more money circulating in the market, according to Kamish Desai of Veer Gems, a
Mumbai-based dealer, who reported that business had been “average.” His buyers
were mainly from Europe and Russia. Like other dealers, Desai intends to be
present at Hong Kong’s fair in 2013. “It’s like a marriage — you can’t leave
it,” he said.
Article from the Rapaport Magazine - October 2012. To subscribe click here.