Dubai's International Diamond Laboratories (IDL), a diamond certifier, said on Monday it set up shop in the Gulf Arab emirate allowing traders to have their stones graded by high-tech machines instead of the human eye.
"We offer consistency in diamond grading by using the latest technology, which you cannot get if the grading is done by the naked eye," IDL's Chief Executive Peter Meeus told Reuters.
IDL, which will also offer services in Antwerp and Mumbai, said its new service would allow faster grading. Certificates authenticating the grade of the diamonds can be issued within 48 hours to manufacturers, retailers, exporters and end buyers.
"The high-quality diamond certification services will boost trade in the region... it will also ensure a great level of consumer confidence," Youri Steverlynck, chief executive of Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE), told Reuters.
Total trade in rough diamonds in Dubai grew 5.36 percent to $3.93 billion in 2006, said the DDE - the region's only exchange to service the diamond trade from mining to retail. In terms of volume, trade rose 18.8 percent to 84.6 million carats with imports rising 15 percent to about 42.6 million carats and exports surging 23 percent to almost 42 million carats, DDE added.
Dubai's major trading partners for rough diamonds include India, Europe, China and Russia. The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry has said it expected retail diamond jewellery sales in the Gulf, worth about $1.9 billion a year, to see a significant increase in 2007. Saudi Arabia alone accounts for about three quarters of total Gulf Arab diamond jewellery purchases, thanks to surging incomes driven by strong oil price.
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