Fifth annual Dubai City of Gold conference opens to optimistic projections

The conference's roster of 20 leading industry speakers drew more than 300 delegates from 25 countries, making it the largest conference yet and establishing it as the premier event of its kind in the world.

The overriding theme of the two-day conference, organized by the Dubai Gold & Jewellery Group (DGJG), is 'Opportunities and Challenges.'

Tawfique Abdullah, Chairman of the DGJG, opened the conference with a speech that outlined the jewellery industry's increasing role in GCC economies. Abdullah said the UAE government has played a vital role in ensuring the strength of the industry in the country, calling its participation in DCGC 'an excellent example of what private and public sector partnership can achieve.'

Abdullah revealed that the jewellery market in the GCC represents 14 percent of the global total, which stands at US$146 billion per year. Of that share, Saudi Arabia accounts for 45 percent, followed by the UAE at 30 percent. 'I am proud to say,' Abdullah said, 'that our industry is the third largest contributor to the GCC economy, after construction and oil & gas.' He added that jewellery represents 10 percent of the region's non-oil GDP, and is expected to grow at an annual rate of 15-20 percent.

The jewellery industry's importance to the UAE economy was underlined by HE Abdullah bin Ahmed Al Saleh, Under Secretary at the Ministry of Economy, who in his keynote address said the gold trade through Dubai increased 37 percent last year, reaching US$14.75 billion. 'I truly believe that Dubai's status as the City of Gold and the jewellery destination of the world is now firmly established,' Al Saleh said.

He added: 'The remarkable performance is not only due to the city's commitment to service excellence and competitive pricing. Seven million tourists visited Dubai in 2006, and 52 percent of all gold sales in the emirate were made to tourists.' The 45-day Dubai Shopping Festival alone, he added, account for AED 1 billion in jewellery sales.

The conference's next speaker, Colin Griffith, Executive Director (Gold) at the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) pointed out that Dubai's recent successes were all the more remarkable in the context of the global market, which has suffered setbacks due to the volatility of gold prices. He added that the emirate's role in the market is moving beyond retail. Gold refining in Dubai, he said, stands at 400 tons a year, putting it 'in the Premier League of gold refining countries.'

Griffith also pointed to the expanding scope and importance of the Dubai Gold & Commodities Exchange (DGCX), which is constantly moving into new sectors, such as steel and sugar, and is attracting such global heavy hitters as Deutsche Bank, HSBC and JP Morgan. He wrapped up his speech by formally announcing the launch of Dubai's first souvenir gold coin, 'Visions of Dubai,' which will go onto the market in September.

Despite the generally positive mood, the early stages of the conference did involve some cautionary advice. Alison Burns, Head of Precious Metals (MENA) for Standard Bank, highlighted the ongoing volatility of the global gold market, and the jitters this has caused among wholesalers and retailers. 'We're a long way off from seeing calm waters,' Burns said before outlining a range of risk management products available from Standard Bank.

'With continued volatility,' she said, 'we must focus our efforts on protecting ourselves.'

The DCGC conference runs from April 22 through April 23.