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PussyLover 69
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Report from The Nation dated Monday 4 June 2007 :-
Call for one-stop jewellery centre
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The Gems and Jewellery Traders' Association is pushing hard for the creation of a "one-stop" jewellery trading centre clustered around Mahesak and Silom roads in Bangkok.
Association president Pornchai Chuenchomlada said yesterday that as one of the world's leading exporters of gems and jewellery, Thailand should have such a trading centre, and the Mahesak and Silom roads area already has about 5,000 companies ranging from small- to large-scale enterprises.
He said the Commerce Ministry and Bangkok Metropolitan Administration had agreed with the proposal and the plan should be set in motion as quickly as possible so it can enhance trade and exports during the current economic slowdown.
"When it becomes the gems and jewellery trading centre, the number of manufacturers and exporters on the two roads is expected to increase to 10,000 companies within five years," he said, adding that the plan will also promote Thailand as a high-quality manufacturer of gems and jewellery and attract "higher quality" tourists.
Pornchai said other major gem and jewellery traders, such as the United States and Belgium, had set up trading centres as one-stop shopping venues.
The association has been promoting the plan over the past three or four years and many government agencies have backed it. However, the proposal has hitherto lacked the backing of an appropriate agency to take responsibility for it.
Pornchai said that changed when the association raised the idea recently with Commerce Minister Krirk-krai Jirapaet and he agreed with it.
He said Mahesak and Silom roads were already the most important area in Bangkok for gem and jewellery trading. A total of about 5,000 companies on the two roads used to generate an average trading value of Bt1 billion per day. However, the value has dropped to hundreds of millions of baht since the interim government took power.
Mahesak Road is best known as a trading area for coloured stones, while Silom Road is recognised for its diamond and jewellery businesses.
Pornchai said government agencies, including the Tourism Authority of Thailand, should join with private sector operators to design a promotion at Suvarnabhumi Airport to attract customers to the gems and jewellery trading centre.
He said that having a trading centre would reduce the sale of low-quality gems and problems of cheating customers because Thai traders will control each other.
Moreover, "Jewel Fest" has been set up as a subsidiary of the association to monitor and control gem and jewellery shops so that they provide high quality and guarantee satisfaction to consumers and tourists.
Buyers of gems and jewellery bearing a Jewel Fest sticker from any shop are able to claim their money back with a 10-per-cent deduction if for any reason they are unsatisfied with their purchase.
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Posted on: 12:28 am on June 4, 2007
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