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ad Anversa, che si erano attenuati alla fine di marzo. Le spedizioni sono rimaste bloccate per più di una settimana, con i funzionari che hanno bloccato merci chiaramente non coperte dalle sanzioni, come i box del grezzo De Beers e pietre inferiori a 0,50 carati, ha detto a Rapaport News un commerciante della città belga. Il GJEPC è stato uno dei numerosi enti commerciali che hanno firmato una lettera a febbraio, in cui sconsigliavano chiunque desiderasse vendere diamanti lucidi nel G7 a inviare prima i propri diamanti grezzi ad Anversa per l'ispezione.
Ulteriore confusione è nata dall’esistenza di regole diverse in diverse giurisdizioni, nonché dall’incertezza sui beni “ancestrali” presenti negli Stati Uniti prima del
1° marzo, ha spiegato Ray. Inoltre, le banche statunitensi stanno chiedendo agli acquirenti di diamanti maggiori informazioni rispetto a prima del 1° marzo, creando ritardi nei pagamenti agli esportatori indiani, come ha dichiarato un commerciante con sede a Mumbai, a condizione di mantenere l’anonimato. Il GJEPC ha tenuto una riunione dei
membri del settore nella prima metà di aprile, per ascoltare il feedback sulla situazione. Tuttavia, data la debolezza generale del mercato dei diamanti, un impatto significativo sui flussi commerciali è improbabile, ha affermato Mehta della BDB. “La domanda stessa è lenta”, ha detto Mehta.
“Sarei sorpreso se tra un paio di mesi si verificasse un problema di catena di approvvigionamento”.
THE NEW SANCTIONS ON RUSSIAN DIAMONDS CAUSE CHAOS IN THE INDIAN DIAMOND TRADE
Rapaport News reports that clients in the United States and in Europe are asking for declarations of origin for diamonds that are currently exempt from sanctions, causing chaos in the Indian diamond trade. Many traders and jewellers in G7 countries are refusing to purchase cut diamonds without confirmation of origin, even though the new ban on Russian products only applies to stones of
1 carat and larger. The new rules, which came into force on 1 March, have extended the bans of the US and of the European Union to diamonds processed in third countries from rough stones
extracted in Russia. The confusion comes from the lack of an explicit declaration which excludes diamonds weighing less than 1 carat from these import bans, declared key figures of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) of India and the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) of Mumbai. The United States and the EU intend to expand the embargo to 0.50 carats, from 1 September next.
The attitude probably also reflects the expectations that sanctions will expand to minor dimensions over time, declared a senior source in the US market. “Everyone is asking for everything to be certified, not just 1 carat and larger, which is ridiculous”, said Anoop Mehta, President of the BDB, last Monday. “I see that there will be a problem in the future. The G7 must provide clarification according to which goods of less than
1 carat do not require any certification, at least until September”. The process is not particularly expensive or time consuming as most clients only request a self- declaration and not documented proof, declared Mehta. Nevertheless, he added, confusion on the sanctions is pushing Indian exporters to ask their
suppliers for the same information. “If the client wants it, we have to certify it, so the exporter asks for it”, continued Mehta. “Consequently, the entire sector is in chaos”. Furthermore, European clients do not usually accept the declaration that the diamonds are of mixed and non-Russian origin, but request the confirmation of single origin, added Mehta. There are also worries about the fact that the statements on origin have no proof and will be examined in the future, declared Sabyasachi Ray, executive director of GJEPC. The Jewellers Vigilance Committee (JVC), which provides advice to US trade on legal issues, is working on a “written confirmation of the actual parameters of the requirements” which the producers can send to resellers, declared Tiffany Stevens, CEO and general councillor of JVC. The purpose would be that of “reassuring resellers and preventing them from exceeding in their requests”, added Stevens, underlining that this initiative is still at the development phase. The GJEPC also tried to explain the requirements to the sector, but the companies are doing what their clients are asking, commented Ray.
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