IDMA president hits out at ‘dangerous’ diamond tenders

In an article that appeared in the July edition of HaYahalom, the magazine of the Israel Diamond Institute, Moti Ganz said: “If the rough producers don’t wake up in time, it won’t be a mere interference, but a blow to our very existence, capabilities and survival.”

Ganz argued that tenders make sense in a world where they are one of many instruments of supply, but not when all or most supply is based on tenders. “Manufacturers that engage in occasional diamond processing might be able to survive in a world where there are only tenders,” he stated, “but even then it will be with difficulty… because those who manufacture in large quantity can dominate the tenders and push prices to a level that medium-sized manufacturers can’t reach.

“When we examine these aspects of tenders, we realise that they weaken each and every link along the diamond value chain,” he continued. “The most prominent victims are manufacturers and retailers, but there is also another – the rough producer, so dazed by the hefty profits that it doesn’t notice the danger lurking around the corner.”