Dubai: Dubai's quest to regain its status as the centre of the global pearl industry took another step towards its ambitious goal yesterday as the results of the first ever pearl tender held here last month were announced.
The tender, held a few days before another first for Dubai - the World Pearl Forum - generated sales of over $1 million (Dh3.67 million) wholesale value.
Some individual pieces are said to have fetched over $50,000, according to a statement.
The invitation-only event held from February 12-16 was organised by the Dubai Pearl Exchange (DPE), a subsidiary of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC).
"The Dubai Pearl Exchange's inaugural tender of rare cultured and natural pearls has channelled the pearl trade to Dubai and underscored the UAE's historic relevance in the international market," Ahmad Bin Sulayem, chairman of DMCC, said.
The pearl beds beneath the warm and relatively shallow waters of the Arabian Gulf are arguably some of the largest and oldest known, with several estimates dating back over 2,500 years.
It is estimated that at the height of the Arabian Gulf's importance in international pearling, over 80,000 people in the UAE were employed in the industry.
Unfortunately, a burgeoning industry was crippled by the ingenuity of Japanese cultured pearls in the early 20th century. It is estimated that by 1935 there were 350 pearl farms in Japan producing 10 million cultured pearls annually. Combined with the onset of the economic depression of the 1930s, the region's pearling heritage appeared consigned to the history books.
Decades on, the UAE continues to find it hard to shrug off its pearly past. Attempts by Dubai to re-establish the regional prominence of the region in the global pearl market are gaining momentum.
In 2007 DMCC launched the DPE, a trading platform for the pearl industry. Earlier this month, statistics from Dubai World placed the value of the loose pearl trade in Dubai at over Dh95 million last year, up from Dh22 million in 2007.
"Pearls are a luxury item which have been affected [by the economic slowdown]. But they reflect the mood of the economy, they are a less ostentatious display of wealth," said Sahil Karani, director for business development at Mikura Pearls in Dubai.
