Originally scheduled for 2–8 March, the Hong Kong Trade Development Council (HKTDC) announced on 5 February that its two international jewellery fairs would take place on 18–21 May due to concerns about the virus.
However, HKTDC has now taken steps to change the dates a second time.
“Due to the rapid development of the global COVID-19 outbreak, the Hong Kong SAR Government has gazetted the compulsory quarantine of persons arriving at Hong Kong from foreign places regulation to protect public health,” a media release stated.
“Starting from 19 March 2020, all travellers arriving from outside China must be quarantined upon arrival in Hong Kong for 14 days. The regulation will be in effect for three months until 18 June.”
The new government regulation means that overseas exhibitors and visitors planning to attend the trade events would “have great difficulty joining the fairs”.
“We would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to industry associations and buyers from around the world for their tremendous support for HKTDC events. We will make every effort to provide the industry with the same safe and effective jewellery-trading platform and continue helping companies capture business opportunities through multiple channels," the HKTDC statement said.
One such channel to help facilitate trade is the Work@Home package, operated through the digital HKTDC Sourcing Platform. Work@Home allows sellers to feature up to 20 products and receive direct enquiries from the Platform's 2 million international buyers.
The HKTDC statement added: “In light of the changing situation, we have decided to suspend the preparation work for the twin fairs. At the same time, we are consulting with the industry to come up with other viable solutions. Details of any new arrangements will be announced in due course."
The decision is not surprising given that more than 10 major jewellery trade fairs have been postponed or cancelled for 2020, including Baselworld and JCK Las Vegas.
More reading:
Updated list of postponements and cancelled shows
Hong Kong trade fairs postponed