GemeWizard
Home|About Us|Store|Color Report Newsletter|Support|News & Events|Contact|Gemstones Colors

Gemstones Colors and Prices



         


   

      Gemewizard archive daily article




Cutting turquoise in Mashhad, Iran, circa 1973. Photo Credit: John Hill



  Despite sanctions, Iran still exporting almost $58 million of colored gemstones annually


November 12, 2012


With economic sanctions against the Iranian government tightening, as the international community attempts to halt the country's march toward nuclear weapons, colored gemstone sales continue. According to Mohammad Javad Pishbin, managing director of the Jewelry Industrial Clusters Development Company, the level of gemstone exports per annum currently stands at $57.7 million.

Turquoise is the Iranian colored gemstone sector's primary export, followed by carnelian, a brownish red stone, and garnet.

Indeed, the export total may be an underestimate, Pishbin suggested. Because the Iranian government has removed export incentives for some precious stones, including sapphires, some exporters may not have officially reported their sales.

Last year the Iranian Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade imposed a 70 percent tariff of precious stones, precipitating an outcry from the gemstone industry. This year the Iranian Majlis, or parliament, approved a law that removes tariffs on mineral exports.

Pishbin was speaking at a news conference, ahead of the Fourth Seminar on Precious and Semi-Precious Stones and First Festival of Turquoise in Mashhad.

Turquoise has traditionally been associated with Iran, with the country home to one of the world's two oldest known mining areas, with the other being located in the South of Israel and in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula. Between 15 and 20 tons of turquoise are extracted annually in Iran.

Mashhad, which is the second largest city in Iran and is located 850 kilometers east of Tehran in the Razavi Khorasan Province, is the center of the country's gemstone industry. There currently are more than 450 gem cutting plants in the area, and the Mashhad Customs Department is planning a specialized terminal for import and export of colored gemstones.

In the face of International sanctions, Iran is placing a greater emphasis on its mineral exports, which include copper, iron and aluminum. The government has set a non-oil export revenue target of $45 billion. Last year mineral exports totaled $7 billion.

©2007 Menahem Sevdermish, GemEwizard, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Designed by YCS - Yahalom Creative Solutions