India Polished Diamond Exports -17% in December
January 20, 16
(IDEX Online News) – The recent trend of a drop in polished diamond exports in India continued in December with provisional figures showing that exports were $1.2 billion compared to $1.45 billion a year previously – a 17.1 percent year-on-year decline according to figures from the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). In the year-to-date (April-December), exports of cut and polished diamonds fell to $14.79 billion compared to $17.32 billion over the same prior year period, which represents a 14.6 percent decline. Polished exports also decreased by volume during the period, dropping to 1.88 million carats from 1.98 million carats in the same period in the prior year – a 5-percent decline. Exports of colored gemstones declined from $20.71 million in December 2014 to $15.76 million in December 2015 – a 23.9-percent decrease. The value of polished imports plummeted by 46 percent to $239 million down from $441.6 million in November 2014. Rough imports increased slightly by 2.44 percent in value terms, rising to $1.46 billion million compared to $1.43 billion in the prior year. In volume terms, rough diamond imports increased 6.98 percent to 15.04 million carats compared to 14.06 million carats in December 2014. In the year-to-date, rough imports declined to $10.12 billion compared to $13.31 billion a year earlier – a 24-percent decrease. India exported $2.93 million worth of lab-grown polished stones during the month down from $8.61 million in the prior year – a 66-percent decline. The country imported $11.44 million worth of rough lab-grown stones in December, a significant 57-percent increase over the $4.92 million in the same month a year previously.