Japan's 2012 Diamond Imports $902 Million
January 30, 13 by Edahn Golan
(IDEX Online News) – Japan closes a third year of growth in polished diamond imports. The country imported $902 million worth of goods in 2012, a 10.9 percent year-over-year increase.
It may not be enough to regain its standing as the world's second largest diamond consuming market, a title it lost to China, but Japanese consumers are clearly expressing a steadily growing interest in diamond jewelry.
The increase in imports in 2012 is especially impressive in light of the forward leap in imports the country made following the triple disaster that hit Japan in March 2011. Imports in 2011 surged 17.3 percent.
India, Belgium and Hong Kong are Japan's leading diamond sources, together supplying 74.6 percent of Japan's annual diamond intake.
The volume of imports increased 6.9 percent to 2 million carats.
In December, Japan imported 132,004 carats worth $67.8 million, a 2.1 percent increase in value, according to figures published by Momozawa & Co., Inc.
Source: Momozawa & Co., Inc |
