Shanghai: The finishing touches are being put to the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) Executive Committee (Exco) Meeting and Asia-Pacific Presidents’ Summit to be held in Shanghai on March 9 and 10. Regional WFDB presidents, along with WFDB President Ernie Blom, will be hosted by the Shanghai Diamond Exchange.

Together with Blom, the presidents of diamond exchanges in the region, including Thailand, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Australia, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea and Russia will be taking part in the annual meetings which provide the opportunity for regional issues to be discussed in depth, as well as subjects affecting the global diamond trade. The Exco Meeting will be held on March 9, while the Asia-Pacific Summit takes place on March 10.

The Shanghai Diamond Exchange, as the host of the meetings, will also stage a series of activities with networking events.

“I believe that these Summit meetings are extremely important in order for us to discuss the burning issues of the day, to understand where we are going and to help us see the bigger picture,” said Blom. “Even though we enjoy instant communication with friends and colleagues around the world, these summit meetings still retain their importance because we come face-to-face with our colleagues from across the world and are able to discuss in a calm and informed manner the issues that are affecting all of our members.

“The regional summit meetings began about five years ago, and they have proven their value again and again. They give the heads of the diamond exchanges in Asia the opportunity to interact with each other and to understand the points of view of the other bourse presidents. The issues of concern that are important to Asia are raised and we are able to receive a briefing from each exchange on their particular national perspective and this is invaluable.

Blom added that it was particularly appropriate that China was hosting this year’s meetings. “Just last month, the Shanghai Diamond Exchange announced a big rise in imports in 2014. Imports of polished diamonds to China via this bourse rose by 31 percent on the year in 2014 to $2.24 billion. And there was also a big increase in volume terms of 20 percent to 1.71 million carats. China, and the Pacific region in general, are helping to lead the way in diamond sales and that gives us great optimism going forward.”