Watch, jewellery show banks on rising tourists
dubai — Sheikh Abdullah bin Salem bin Sultan Al Qasimi, Deputy Ruler of Sharjah and Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council, inaugurated the 45th edition of the MidEast Watch and Jewellery Show at Expo Centre Sharjah on Tuesday .
The show has the participation of more than 500 local and international companies and brands from 25 different countries that specialise in the design and manufacture of watches and jewellery, as well as accessories and ornaments made with gold, diamonds, precious stones, pearls and others. Making a strong presence at the show are Japanese jewellery companies, who are participating as part of a Japanese national pavilion for the first time. The Indian pavilion, which is the largest at this year’s show, as well as the Hong Kong, Italian, Malaysian, Singaporean, Lebanese and Thai pavilions are having a wide range of products on display.
Some of the prominent brands and companies that specialise in watches and jewellery from the UK, Russia, the US, Latvia, Lithuania, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, and Taiwan are also attracting visitors’ attention.
The opening ceremony of the exhibition was attended by Abdallah Sultan Al Owais, Chairman of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Saif Mohammed Al Midfa, CEO of Expo Centre Sharjah; Mohamed Ahmed Amin, Acting Director-General of the SCCI; and a number of government officials, retailers and representatives of the gold and jewellery sector.
Al Midfa said he expects the new edition of the exhibition would draw an increasing number of visitors, especially in light of an eight per cent growth in visitor traffic during the previous edition, which drew 61,465 visitors.
He said the exhibition comes at a time when market studies indicate that the UAE has succeeded during the last few years in becoming the leading global hub in the diamond trade, with a volume of trade worth $26 billion, which makes it the largest diamond market globally. Al Midfa said the UAE has been able to attract 14 per cent of the global gold trade, which has increased its competitiveness in the gold industry and enhanced its status on the global gold trade map.