Dubai Gems Club to grow trade in Gems, Pearls, Diamonds

The Dubai Gems Club will offer its members an exclusive platform to network and engage in dialogue with the objective of transacting business. Membership will initially be restricted to about 25 companies and priority will be given to registered members of the DMCC free zone.

"Effectively, this is the launch of a new bourse in Dubai," explained Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chief Operating Officer, DMCC. "The Dubai Gems Club will offer members exclusivity alongside the facility of secure trading rooms, respecting the privacy of traders, in keeping with the international norms of the coloured stones and diamonds trade. Accordingly, Dubai Gems Club will not disclose statistics or details of trade transactions conducted through the club, unless specially requested by the traders themselves."

The global market for these precious commodities is around $85 billion, with annual growth of between five and ten per cent. Dubai too has seen exponential growth in the diamonds and coloured stones trade in 2005. The Emirate's expertise and reputation in the field is founded on a long tradition of trading, and has been cemented more recently by the successful establishment of the Dubai Diamond Exchange and the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange two earlier DMCC initiatives.

Ahmed bin Sulayem continued: "Dubai Gems Club has been established in response to requests from the local and international gems and jewellery market participants and is a clear example of a successful partnership between the public and the private sector to drive the growth of the industry further. The operational format of the club was decided in consultation with the Diamonds and Coloured Stones Advisory committee at DMCC, underlining the Centre's role in enabling the industry's development."

"The Dubai Gems Club is expected to focus on all industry issues related to coloured stones, pearls and jewellery with the objective of raising the profile of the coloured stones sector in Dubai and bring it on par with the gold and diamond trade," said Tawfic Farah, Executive Director Diamonds and Coloured Stones, DMCC. "In keeping with Dubai's growing role as the hub of jewellery trade, we also plan to develop a database of trade statistics for gems and coloured stone jewellery," he added.

Other industry specific issues that will be of interest to the Dubai Gems Club include working closely with the Ministry of Economy to change existing rules regarding customs duty on the import of coloured stones and pearls, and implementing international standards for import and export, taking into consideration the UAE commitment within the GCC countries. The Club also plans to hold training programmes for representatives of the coloured stones and jewellery industry.

Housed in the premises of the Dubai Gem Certification unit, Dubai Gems Club also offers members easy access to the world's first ISO certified gem certification service for diamonds, gemstones, pearls and jewellery items from globally recognised certification bodies. Further information on the Dubai Gems Club can be obtained by accessing the following link: http://www.dmcc.ae/DIAMONDS management gems club.htm on the DMCC website.

As one of the first steps in enabling the development of the coloured stones industry in Dubai, the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre also announced that it would sponsor the 2007 World Congress of the International Coloured Stones Association (ICA), to be held in Dubai from April 28 to May 2, 2007. The Congress will bring over 250 experts to the region to provide knowledge and expertise for ICA members, to further explore the growing potential of Dubai in the consumer market for coloured gemstones.