Among the exceptional gemstones ever sold at auction, emerald is in a prominent position that cannot be ignored. The recent example is the famed Rockefeller Emerald ring set with an 18.04-carat octagonal step-cut emerald, which was auctioned at Christie’s Magnificent Jewels sale in New York in June 2017. World-renowned jeweller Harry Winston purchased this stunning stone that embodies the grandeur of the Rockefeller family name for US$5.5 million (US$305,000 per carat), making it the most expensive emerald per carat ever sold at auction. Hong Kong Jewellery recently talked to some emerald traders on market updates of this deep green stone.
Asian demand drives Colombian emeralds
Based in Hong Kong, Rotbart Precious Stones supplies high-quality and rare conflict-free Colombian emeralds mined from famous mines of Muzo and Chivor legitimately, in fancy and ideal cuts, various hues, clarity and sizes. Jonathan Rotbart of the company said that the production in Colombia has been slow in recent years due to the closure of some old mines and the government’s strict control of mining and exports of polished stones. Thus, the prices of Colombian emeralds have been pushed up in 2017 with main demand recorded from Asia especially China.
Selling products ranging from one to 30 carats at US$900-25,000 per carat, Rotbart said: “Our sales in 2017 were much better than in 2016. We received more calls for Colombian emeralds in special cuts like heart shape, and expanded our network and client base.”
He also mentioned that among ‘the big three’ (ruby, sapphire and emerald) coloured gemstones, emerald is not that familiar to most customers especially new-comers. “I can see the potential of the emerald market, and its bright future,” he added.
As a Colombian emerald specialist offering stones at US$3,000-6,000 per carat, Bangkok-based M Golab Co, Ltd has been in the industry for 20 years. Acknowledged the declining production in Colombia, company president Mehrdad Golab observed that compared to the past when all ranges of products sold well, today’s clients mainly prefer medium- to high-level stones from two to five carats, while larger stones are little difficult to sell. The demand is mainly from Hong Kong and mainland China. He thinks that the influence of global economy and the fierce competition resulted from many new traders entering into the market are the reasons behind it.
Colombian emerald wholesaler Beautiful Color Stone Co, Ltd sells polished stones in small-to-medium sizes. Company representative Sanjay Gupta told Hong Kong Jewellery that the prices of Colombian emeralds in 2016 jumped 20-30 percent, and the prices in 2017 should see a 20-percent growth, because of the limited sources, the reputation of Colombian emeralds and the soaring demand from Asia.
“In 2017, the demand for Colombian emeralds was mainly from mainland China, India and the UAE, while that from Hong Kong reduced,” stated Akshit Musal, director of Color Impex, wholesaler of Colombian and Zambian emeralds. Despite the political-economic changes in some Asian countries which affected consumers’ propensity to buy, the sales of fine-quality emeralds recorded well, he said.
Zambian emeralds gain higher acceptance
Different sources of emeralds present different characteristics and qualities, resulting in different prices. Colombian emerald is with no doubt the market leader in terms of price, well-recognised by customers. While the yield of Colombian emeralds sinks, Gemfields’ Zambian emeralds which account for 30 percent of the global emerald output are gaining higher market acceptance nowadays thanks to their stable supply, high quality and reasonable prices.
Strong auction results reflected Zambian emeralds’ market acceptance. Held in October 2017 in Lusaka, Zambia, Gemfields emerald auction fetched a total of US$21.5 million revenue. Among the lots was the high-profile 6,100-carat ‘Insofu’ emerald which was discovered at the Kagem mine in 2010 and bought by Indian jeweller Diacolor.
“Because of Gemfields’ promotion, the market is willing to accept more emeralds from other sources like Zambia and the newly-discovered mine in Ethiopia,” said Jonathan Rotbart of Rotbart Precious Stones. “It increases the competition, which is healthy for market development and beneficial for customers.”
An authorised Gemfields auction partner, Hong Kong-based Sparkle Gems manufactures Zambian emeralds in their factory in Jaipur, India, and supplies clients across the United States, Europe, Hong Kong, mainland China and Thailand. With China and the States as main markets, the company mainly sells emeralds weighing from one to five carats at reasonable prices and gains over US$10 million turnover annually.
Imran Khan, director of the company told Hong Kong Jewellery: “The demand of Zambian emeralds grew up in 2017 as Gemfields increased the production. In 2017, customers went for traditional gemstones like ruby, sapphire and emerald at medium level. As a result, Zambian emeralds in commercial quality were sought-after.”
Challenges facing the industry
Certificate plays an important role in analysing emeralds and making purchase decisions for customers. Akshit Musal of Color Impex revealed that around 50 to 80 percent of polished stones they offer are certified, while it is “time-wasting and unnecessary” for traders to submit small stones for certificates.
According to M Golab’s Mehrdad Golab, customers especially from China care too much about certificate, but not the stone. They want certificates even for small stones below one carat, which is an issue for most traders. “If you know emeralds, you can get confidence. If you get confidence in stones, you can easily buy and sell them. It is impossible to get confidence only from the paper,” he emphasised.
Organising seminars on emeralds for clients, Rotbart Precious Stones aims to establish one-on-one relationships with customers, educate them and help them make decisions. “Those who know the information can win the competition. There is no price index in the emerald trade like the RapNet Diamond Index in the white diamond trade. Education is very important in the emerald industry. Customers need to see more stones in order to understand them,” noted Jonathan Rotbart.
With new-comers joining the industry and selling products through different channels like social media, Rotbart also believes that in the long term, the challenge every practitioners will face is to go online. “Looking at five years from now, we definitely will have some dominant players selling emeralds on e-commerce platforms,” he said. As the effectiveness of traditional trade fairs is going down due to the rise of e-commerce, according to Rotbart, traders need to combine both traditional and online sales channels to embrace the globalisation trend of the market.
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