Re: Supply of 6-6.5mm Akoya pearls
Re: Supply of 6-6.5mm Akoya pearls
This is indeed an issue today. Nearly every pearl company you talk to today is having the same issue sourcing 6.5mm Akoya pearls. The reasons are quite simple, but the solution is not.
Everyone knows that more than 90% of Akoya pearls in the size come from China. Japanese farms know it is a losing proposition to culture pearls of this size and are now almost exclusively culturing larger pearls 8mm and up. Because of this Japanese factories either import their pearls directly from Chinese farms, or buy them in China and work them there as well. There are 5 processing factories in Behai in the Guangxi province, and three are owned by Japanese companies. Another, run by Mr. Chen Yu Wen, is a Japanese coop, and utilizes only Japanese equipment in its operations.
Because of the plethora of Akoya pearl farms in China one would think the supply of these pearls would never be low. But in China the supply follows the profit margins. In 1992 the majority of pearls coming out of China were 5-5.5mm. Today they are 7-7.5mm, and soon to be 7.5-8mm. Akoyas 6-6.5mm have not been the bulk of production since 1999. Pearls are sold to processing centers on basis of weight, so the larger the pearl the larger the profit.
The shortage of 6-6.5mm pearls actually began in 2002. Prices on high-quality 6.5mm hanks started to jump, but the quality started to decline. There is only one major pearl producer in China that saw this coming and decided to capitalize on this future. The company is Ronghui in Luisha. They produced 1 ton of 6-6.5mm pearls in early 2003, which accounted for 90% of the total Chinese production. Because of this they basically had a monopoly on the market, and prices have since gone through the roof – at least for high-quality strands. It is now quite easy to purchase 7mm strands for less than comparable 6.5mm strands.
Because of this shortage I personally directed our farm in Haian to produce a large crop of 6-6.5mm pearls in winter of 2003. This crop is actually being harvested this week and next – I am flying out next week to view the harvest. When we have these pearls processed we will have approximately 2,500 strands available. This will not be enough to direct market prices, but will keep prices low for our customers and retailers through the holiday season.
