Exports of Rough Diamonds from Israel Continue Rise
May 04, 04
Exports and imports of rough diamonds continued their surge in and out of Israel, as global demand and prices of rough continued to climb.
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Net exports of rough diamonds from Israel totaled $181 million in April, a 38 percent increase over the comparable period last year with $132 million in exports.
Interestingly, in carat terms the country exported 2.161 million carats, a whopping increase of 157 percent over last April, brining average per-carat price down to $84 from $157 the year before.
Rough diamond imports saw an even greater increase in April totaling $314 million, 42 percent more than the $222 million in exports during April of last year. Here too the average cost per carat dropped.
A 91 percent increase in weight to 2.11 million carats during the month over 1.1 million carats yesteryear brought average per carat price down by over 25 percent to $149 from $201.
Diamond Controller Udi Sheintal explains the surge in a relatively soft market in April 2003, due to uncertainty in the diamond industry over the war in Iraq and the outbreak of SARS in Hong Kong and other countries in Asia last year.
Rough diamond imports into Israel rose 49 percent since the start of the year despite the shortage that seemed to exist in the markets at the beginning of the year.