Over 300 international buyers from 18 countries, and leaders of a number of diamond bourses from across the globe, attended the International Diamond Week in Israel (IDWI) which opened in Ramat Gan on February 10, the organisers said in a press release. Over 110 of the buyers were first time visitors to Israel.

The show, which features about 200 exhibitors and more than $1 billion worth of diamonds will continue through February 12, 2020.

The inauguration was attended by Ramat Gan Mayor Carmel Shama Hacohen, WFDB President Ernie Blom, CIBJO President Dr Gaetano Cavalieri and leaders of key diamond trade bodies in Israel. Also present were Alrosa President Sergei Ivanov, Bharat Diamond Bourse VP Mehul Shah, Dubai’s DDMC Executive Chairman and CEO Ahmed Bin Sulayem, London Diamond Exchange President Alan Cohen and Honorary President of the World Diamond Council Eli Izhakoff.

In his opening remarks IDE President Yoram Dvash said, “I am delighted to see all the distinguished guests who came from Israel and abroad. This year, a record number of buyers and delegations from around the world have arrived here.” He said that the total number of participants would have been larger, but that due to the emergency declared in China, many of the East Asian buyers were not able to attend. “We all hope that the Chinese will soon be able to control the spread of the corona virus and that the entire world will breathe a sigh of relief.”

Dvash added, “We are at the beginning of 2020 and we very much hope that this year will be one of recovery in the markets. In light of the reductions in rough allocation by some producers, shortages have been created and demand for certain goods has grown. This is certainly a step that will allow an adjustment in the global levels of rough and polished goods. We hope that this trend will continue in the coming months, and will create new opportunities for the world diamond industry.”

In addition to transacting business on the trading floor, the participants also had the opportunity to listen to presentations by industry veterans and panel discussions.

Martin Rapaport, President of the Rapaport Group delivered an address entitled “Making Challenges into Opportunities” on Day one. He stressed the importance of upholding values in marketing diamonds, especially to the younger generations who wish to make the world a better place.

On the second day, Rapaport’s senior analyst and news editor Avi Krawitz hosted a panel on trends in the diamond industry which included Sarine Technologies CEO David Block, WFDB President Ernie Blom, Alrosa’s Alexey Tikhonov, Israel’s Diamond Controller Ofir Gur and diamond trader Emanuel Namdar. The discussions focused on “Traceability & Provenance from Supply Chain to Manufacturing and Retail.”

A lecture by Oded Edelman, CEO of R2Net and James Allen about the role of e-commerce in selling diamonds was also on the agenda for the third day.

Pic caption: ISDE President Yoram Dvash addressing the inaugural session of IDWI 2020

Pic courtesy: ISDE