ALROSA presented the results of its own research of 2018’s global luxury and jewelry market.

Alrosa, a world leader in diamond mining, reported that global sales of diamond jewelry had grown four percent 2018 compared to the previous year, reaching $85.9 billion. In 2017, the global jewelry market grew with five percent, compared to 2016. The firm said that the lower numbers for 2018 growth were a result “of a slowdown in key consumption markets in the second half of 2018.”

While in the first half, global demand for diamond jewelry grew with six percent, during the second half of the year demand only grew with two percent, as consumer demand in non-dollar countries slumped due to unfavorable exchange rates of local currencies against the US dollar. On the other hand, diamond jewelry sales in North America, which account for more than half of global sales, increased with four percent in 2018.

Sales in Asia (including Southeast Asia and India) account for about 30 percent of global diamond jewelry sales. Annual growth was comparable to that of North America and stood at five percent at the end of 2018.