SARS Spells Slowdown in Hong Kong

The fear of SARS is keeping residents of Hong Kong out of public places with the hopes of avoiding the risk of getting infected by the disease. People are avoiding as much as possible public transportation, markets and shopping centers.

As a result, Hong Kong diamond jewelry retailers are reporting an 80 – 90 percent drop in sales, and some fear the end is nowhere close. This affects diamond dealers too, who’ve been avoiding arriving at the island and some find themselves flying to Taiwan as a last resort.

This is the kind of solution that the bigger companies can afford, however medium to small dealers are so desperate, one jokingly said that he is happy that he can open the windows at his high-rise office. Israeli diamantaires are reporting a more then 50 percent drop in business with Hong Kong clients, and that is probably a conservative figure.