GUANGZHOU: Guangzhou's Panyu District, one of the nation's key bases for jewelry export, will focus more attention on the domestic market.

"Being a base for jewelry export, the district has been primarily involved in jewelry processing and has become a jewllery supplying base for the domestic market. The district must become a jewelry producer and own its own brands," said Li Zhiwei, deputy director of the Panyu District Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation Bureau, during the 4th session of the China (Guangzhou) International Gold, Jewelry & Gem Fair, which ended on Monday.

Panyu has a very well developed jewelry industrial chain as well as a public R&D platform for a greater technology-intensive and value-added industry, he said, adding that jewelry suppliers in the district are in a very good position to win the domestic market share.

"With the huge domestic market , our jewellery industrial development would be far from healthy if we ignored the domestic market," he said.

Official statistics indicate that the district's jewelry exports were worth $1.16 billion in 2006, an increase of 9.3 percent from 2005. The value made up 20 percent of the nation's total jewelry exports in the year.

According to the official, the easy money from the jewellery processing business and the long-term and rather expensive efforts to build up their own brands have made local jewelry processing enterprises less interested in the domestic market.

He said that the district government was considering favorable policies for local jewelry enterprises to tap the domestic market.

Panyu's reputation as China's key jewelry processing base can be helpful for the local firms to win over the domestic market share.

He said the district government would continue to join hands with the China Gold Association and CMP Asia Ltd, a well-known jewelry exhibition runner, to organize the China (Guangzhou) International Gold, Jewelry & Gem Fair each year.

"An influential international trade fair will not only lead directly to trade deals but also help build up the brand names," he said.

Over 130 exhibitors from home and abroad displayed a wide range of gold, jewelry and gemstone products during the four-day event, said Sunny Chan, a manager with CMP Asia.

(HK Edition 06/22/2007 page6)