The fourth ASEAN+6 Gems and Jewelry Presidents’ Summit (AGJPS) was held on 21 August 2015 at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre, Malaysia.
Capitalising on the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in December this year, jewellery associations of the 10 ASEAN member states plus six countries and regions have been coming together each year since 2012 discussing ways to establish ASEAN as a single market and production base. After three years of co-hosting by Thai Gem and Jewelry Traders Association (TGJTA) and Gems Jewelry and Precious Metal Confederation of Thailand (GJPCT) of Thailand, the 4th AGJPS was organised by the Federation of Goldsmiths & Jewellers Associations of Malaysia (FGJAM).
Harmonisation of tax within ASEAN was the topic of discussion for the summit this year. Representatives took turn to give an update on the current import and export tariffs, GST or VAT on jewellery and loose stones in respective countries, and shared their points of views and suggestions on fostering growth of the industry.
During the meeting Ngoc Dung Le, chairman of Vietnam Gemstone Jewelry and Art-crafts Association expressed his interest in hosting the fifth AGJPS in Hanoi in mid-October 2016, despite the fact that Myanmar agreed to host the same edition at the summit last year.
Some representatives voiced their concerns over the lack of a permanent AGJPS leader, as leaders of the summit shift along with the changing hosting countries.
Stay tuned with Hong Kong Jewellery Dec’15 edition for more on the fourth AGJPS.
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