Indian diamonds to be screened at Antwerp bourses.

SURAT: Come January 2017, all polished diamonds exported from India, especially stars and melee (small sized stones) will be screened at all the four diamond bourses in Antwerp.

The Antwerp diamond industry has firmed up its stance against undisclosed synthetics and expressed an affirmative action involving four Antwerp Diamond Bourses to be among the first to actively enforce the guidelines defined by the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) for combating undisclosed synthetics.

A major chunk of India's trade with Belgium is of diamonds and other precious stones, which are sent to Antwerp to be cut and polished.

In the financial year 2015, for instance, India's exports of rough diamonds and gems to Belgium were valued at nearly $2.7 billion, while it spent over $9 billion to import polished diamonds from the country.

The WFDB has informed bourse members that starting on January 1, 2017, the four Antwerp diamond bourses will be among the first to actively enforce the guidelines.

The mandatory guidelines include the obligation to add a clear and predefined description of goods on invoices and memo documents, as well as written declarations and disciplinary action against traders who do not implement them. These were stated in a charter created by the WFDB.

According to Antwerp World Diamond Centre's (AWDC) CEO, Ari Epstein, the HRD Antwerp's M-Screen, a melee-screening device, would be made available at all the four bourses in Antwerp for members to screen their goods free of charge. Regional chairman of Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), Dinesh Navadia said, "The diamantaires exporting polished diamonds to Belgium will have to adhere to the WFDB guidelines. They need to be extra vigilant as any mistake will earn a bad name to India."

Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com