Jewellers hoping that expanded gem fair will be a gold mine

More than 3,000 jewellers will be in Hong Kong next week to sell their wares as signs appear of a revival in luxury spending.

Occupying the Wan Chai and airport exhibition venues, the Hong Kong Jewellery and Gem Fair is billed as the biggest fair in the city and the largest of its kind in the world. It will feature one piece valued at US$50 million, said organiser UBM Asia.

The number of exhibitors is up 16 per cent on last year, although the number of buyers is expected to be the same, at about 37,000.

UBM Asia's president and chief executive, Jime Essink, said he was surprised by the growth, especially since jewellery sales in the United States and Europe had been hit hard by the global downturn.

The show will take up all available space at the newly expanded Convention and Exhibition Centre in Wan Chai and eight halls at AsiaWorld-Expo, or a total of 120,000 square metres, up 25 per cent from last year. It is the first show to occupy the entire Convention and Exhibition Centre since its atrium was expanded by almost 20,000 square metres.

Although the show can still expand into AsiaWorld-Expo's arena and the mezzanine and meeting rooms at the Wan Chai venue, Essink said getting any bigger would be a problem. 'When the economy recovers, the show will also be fully booked. So any plans for venue expansion are welcomed by us,' he said.