With in excess of 1,000 people – both foreign buyers and Israeli diamond company representatives – on the floor of the trading hall, Sahar welcomed Kaufman and the delegation of buyers from the United States.
"Reuven Kaufman has become a partner of mine in the way we are leading the diamond industry in Israel and New York," said Sahar. "What started out as a sort of joke at a meeting in Dubai last October about how two presidents can create a win-win situation has become reality.
"What we are seeing is history. I believe we will have these events every year in Israel and New York, and possibly other countries as well."
Photo: Fucs
Photo: Fucs
Meanwhile, Kaufman said that having traveled to many countries and given speeches across the world, he also prepared one for the opening ceremony at the Israel Diamond Exchange. "But when I got here and saw so many old friends, many of whom I did business with their fathers, I realized straight away that that I could not give a speech from a piece of paper. To family, you speak from the heart not from a piece of paper," he said to a rousing reception.
"We started this idea of a trading week in New York last December and we are continuing it here. Just look around and see how successful it is. The goal is not just this week in Israel or a week in New York, but to work together to show the U.S. and Israeli flags around the world and show that the diamond industry is still strong.
In addition to the 65 overseas buyers who registered beforehand for the event, a further 91 have also registered as of Monday morning, making a total of 154 so far.
The Israeli companies are offering more than $1 billion of polished diamonds for sale.
The largest number of buyers is from the United States, while there are also buyers from United Kingdom, Belgium, South Africa, India, Hong Kong, Turkey, Japan, China, Spain, Canada, Russia and Switzerland.
