World diamond conference postponed

The annual diamond conference in Antwerp has been postponed due the financial crisis currently gripping the world economy.

Due to take place on November 17 and 18, 2008, the short notice postponement shows the extent to which diamond traders are concerned about the impact of world events on their industry.

The conference is run by the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC). Chief executive Freddy J. Hanard said: “We have taken a decision to postpone the conference, despite the positive response to conference attendance.”

“The conference has traditionally served as a roadmap for the world diamond community, and as such has come to be regarded as a must-attend event on the industry calendar,' said Hanard. 

“With the turmoil now taking place in the financial markets, we felt that it was essential that we allow the dust to settle first. We therefore thought it prudent to postpone the conference.”

The 5th annual conference was due to focus on the theme Diamonds, A Symbol of Value and would investigate how the gap between a diamond's basic worth and its perceived worth changes and how this value is dispersed along the distribution chain.

An impressive line-up of speakers were set to attend including Virgin founder Sir Richard Branson, De Beers managing director Gareth Penny and Philippe Pascal, chief executive of LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton watch and jewellery.

Hanard said AWDC was currently looking at alternative dates for the event.

“Our priority now is to focus and analyse the most important issues facing the diamond industry and how we, at AWDC, can support the market,” he added.

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