pearl jewelry

China is the world's foremost producer of pearl jewelry, accounting for more than half of global supply. Exports of jewelries have been increasing in the past few years and continue to show strong growth: Sales in the first 10 months of 2005 grew more than 50 percent to US$650 million. It is estimated that 70 percent of the country's exports in the line go to OEM and ODM customers. Higher raw material costs and a growing supplier base are intensifying competition in China's pearl jewelry export industry. China has harvested freshwater pearls for many centuries in the 'zhuji' of China. World production and cultivation of freshwater pearls is dominated by the Chinese, who grown the mollusks in lakes, rivers, and ponds within the Zhejiang coastal region (aka "the hometown of pearl"). These Chinese pearls are sometimes referred to as "Biwa" pearls, named after their freshwater Japanese counterparts from Lake Biwa, Japan.