ATP - General Discussion, page-245

It sounds like you are framing a new pearl supplier into the market like its a bad thing for ATP. It is rather quite the contrary. When you have more suppliers, you are often provided more opportunities as a customer to buy pearls and then the pearl product is likely to be marketed more and hence attract more customers who may not have considered pearls as a choice, but now do.

Also a typical pearl customer would usually be considered wealthy as jewellery is a luxury item. There will always be rich people who have capacity and will choose to buy pearls in every economic cycle, irrespective of interest rates, war and so on. Hence your statement of traders who are nervous who hold a large stock of white South Sea pearls is largely fearmongering.

Lets say Apple launches a new iPhone, and Samsung also market their flagship Galaxy phone, so now the market is reminded and made aware of 2 companies offering new phones. Ignoring the difference between the loyal Apple fanboys/fangirls and Android loyalists, the target market now thinks about upgrading their phones even though they may not need to in the next week or so.

In the same way another pearl supplier with increased marketing encourage the pearl customer to think that "I saw an ad for a pearl product recently, its my wife's/girlfriend birthday/anniversary or special occasion coming up and I think I will get her a nice pearl ear rings" instead of getting a non-pearl product.

The global market is broad and full of opportunities for the pearl customer rather than the small and constricted view you ascertain to.

It is also likely that a pearl customer is not always the same as one who prefers gold chain necklaces and gold ear rings.

Additionally, the removal of supply from the Japanese Akoya would have had a more material impact on supply constraints and if the demand remains firm, it should ensure higher prices of all pearl products at the higher quality and greater margin end. Hence this would have an upward pressure on prices for the pearl market for the next few years and provide significant tailwinds for ATP.