Thai exports of gems & jewelry keep growing

BANGKOK, June 8 (TNA) - The Gem and Jewelry Institute of Thailand (GIT) reports that the country's exports of gems and jewelry, excluding gold, have kept growing, reaching over 2.5 billion US dollars during the first four months of this year. GIT Director Duangkamol Jiambutr told journalsits on Friday that the Thai exports of gems and jewelry during the first four months of this year at about 2.54 billion US dollars represented a 6.46 per cent-year-on-year expansion. Duangkamol stated that the Thai gems and jewelry exports during the January-April period comprised of 13.46 per cent gold, 3.69 per cent platinum, 0.08 cut diamond and 10.87 per cent cut sapphire jewelry products, as well as 19.79 per cent artificial jewelry items although the country's exports of silver jewelry items dropped by 1.84 per cent year-on-year during the same period. According to the GIT director, major markets of Thai exports of gems and jewelry included Russia and the former Soviet Union bloc or the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), India, the Middle East, China, the United States, the European Union (EU), Japan, other member countries in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and Hong Kong. The GIT director explained that Thailand's exports of gold were not included in the figures because overseas purchase orders of gold very much depend on the fluctuating gold prices on the world market. The GIT director cautioned even though Thai exports of gems and jewelry have kept growing, risk factors remain for the country's gems and jewelry industry, including emerging tensions between the United States and the EU and competitions with other gems and jewelry exporting markets, suggesting that Thai exporters of gems and jewelry develop innovative designs to add values of their products and to explore more trade opportunities in such potential importing markets as Russia, the CIS and the Middle East, while also well-handling their risk from foreign exchange rates by buying foreign currencies in advance. (TNA)