Like the case of many luxury commodities favoured by the huge China market, the price of turquoise has soared to an unimaginable level. Yet the increased prices do not necessarily make traders’ lives easier. Traders of American, Egyptian, Iranian and Chinese turquoise share their respective difficulties and insights with Hong Kong Jewellery.
Despite that China is currently the biggest turquoise producer contributing to some 70 percent of the world supply, a number of mines have been closed by the government to prevent depletion. Wang Taiguo of Songshitang in Wuhan, China has been in the trade for 20 years running a brick-and-mortar store as well as an online business (songshitang.com) of turquoise from Hubei. The recent popularity of crafts and treasures helps promote turquoise in Chinese culture and improve consumers’ knowledge of the gemstone. As supply reduces continuously, the price of turquoise rises beyond the market’s limit. According to Wang, high-quality turquoise without inclusions used in high-end carving now costs about 250,000 to 300,000 yuan per kilogram, compared to 30,000 yuan per kilogram five years ago. Another challenge faced by the China’s turquoise industry comes from the opportunity offered by the online platform. While traders who adopted the online platform since the early days have benefited from the extra sales channel, the vast majority who solely operates brick-and-mortor stores suffered poorer sales. He added that despite declining turquoise production, the market is filled with a high level of inventory. In Shiyan and Zhushan, several hundreds of shops competed vigorously with one another. As with the problem of imitation turquoise, he said the only solution is to adhere to honest business practices and inform consumers of the treatments. Besides, Wang has published several titles on turquoise to promote knowledge of the gemstone to the public.
John Hartman of Durango Silver has been collecting and mining American turquoise since 1973. According to him, in 1980, there were over 180 turquoise mines in Arizona and Nevada but today in the United States there is only one major mine – the Kingman mine. In the 1980s, the American government also tightened restrictions on mining, making future research and production development difficult. Today he observes a “severe shortage” in supply, as gemstones collectors hoard high-quality turquoise, driving prices to sky-rocketing levels. For example, rough Kingman turquoise which Hartman described as the best-seller, is US$2,500 to US$4,000 per pound. He said due to the lack of good turquoise supply, some native American-Indian jewellery businesses have tried to switch to other gemstones, but unfortunately they do not sell well. He said high-grade rough American natural turquoise has gone up 500 percent in the last three years, “if one can actually find it”. The reason why it is so hard to find quality materials is that American collectors are not interested in selling their goods. Similar to the case in China, the high prices frustrate traders as they could not buy quality turquoise at a price that customers can accept. The situation has forced some producers to close down their businesses and sold their stones, while those who can find quality natural turquoise are doing well, Hartman added.
Shahriyar Zamansani of Ohana Turquoise has specialised in Iranian turquoise since 2002. According to Zamansani, Iranian turquoise is the first turquoise sold from Turkey to Europe and rest of the world and has over 4,000 years of history. He said: “People who know Iranian turquoise (mostly the last generation) understand its superiority.” Due to limited supply and high domestic demand, only a small amount of Iranian turquoise is exported. Their major overseas markets include the United States, the Far East and the Middle East. Despite its absence in 1970s, Iranian turquoise has now returned to the market. Currently the price per carat for average colour and quality stones ranges between US$10 and US$30. He added: “It has took us a long time attending many shows to tell people that Iranian turquoise is back…a lot of advertising needs to be done.”
Hossam Khalil, who established Egyptian Royale in 2014 selling Egyptian turquoise, held similar views. “I think the customers lack awareness about the different varieties of turquoise. Educated customers are rare. Hence, education is one of our main goals in attending trade shows,” he said. Regarding the market, his sales have shifted from the Middle East and Iran to China and Japan. Due to fluctuations in the Egyptian pound against the US dollar, low level of supply as well as increased mining costs, prices of Egyptian turquoise are unstable. The current average price of rough is US$1,500 per kilogram. He expected the price to lean towards a slight increase driven by the demand in China in particular.
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