Sanctions on Myanmar may take sparkle out of Thai jewelry

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BANGKOK, Mar 16 (AFP): Thai jewellers are buying highly coveted rubies and jade at an official auction this week in Myanmar, which supplies stones for the kingdom's booming, multi-billion-dollar jewelry industry.
But once they cut and set the gems, they could face problems selling them as companies and western governments move to ban trade in precious stones from the military-ruled state.
Myanmar has about 153 million dollars worth of gems on the auction block this week, at the second official sale of the year in a country that produces some of the world's most spectacular stones.
Up to 90 per cent of the world's rubies are from Myanmar, including "pigeon blood" rubies that are considered the finest in the world, sometimes costing more per-carat than a diamond.
Imperial jade-emerald green in colour-is another Myanmar treasure that is highly sought after.
However, leading jewellers including Tiffany, Cartier and Bulgari, are refusing to sell the stones in protest at the military's deadly crackdown on pro-democracy protests led by Buddhist monks in September.
Their boycott is backed up by tightened sanctions in the European Union, which ban trade in Myanmar's gems.
The United States is also moving to close a loophole in its sanctions regime, which had allowed the sale of Myanmar stones as long as they were cut in Thailand.
That has cast a shadow over Thailand's jewelry exports, which soared 33 per cent last year to 185.15 billion baht (5.8 billion dollars).
The kingdom's top buyer is the United States, followed by Hong Kong and Australia, according to government data.
"Sanctions over trade in gems from Myanmar by the US or the European Union will certainly hurt some gem and jewelry exporters in Thailand," said Vichai Assarasakorn, president of the Thai Gem and Jewellery Traders' Association.
He estimated that up to two million dollars worth of gems, mainly rubies, are imported into Thailand from Myanmar each year. But he said there are no official import records, so it's impossible to know the exact amount.
The actual figure could be much higher. Myanmar sells more than 300 million dollars worth of precious stones every year, and Thailand and China are the two biggest buyers.