India’s polished-diamond exports rose 3% year on year to $1.77 billion in December as the market continued to strengthen during the climax of the holiday season.
Rough imports also surged, according to recent data from India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). The increase reflected restocking at manufacturers following the Diwali shutdown and the peak US sales period.
Full-year polished exports jumped 63% to $23.83 billion as the sector rebounded from the 2020 Covid-19 crisis, according to Rapaport calculations based on the GJEPC’s figures.
| India Trade Data for December 2021 | ||
| December 2021 | Year-on-year change | |
| Polished exports | $1.77B | 3% |
| Polished imports | $148M | 22% |
| Net polished exports | $1.62B | 1% |
| Rough imports | $2.1B | 19% |
| Rough exports | $64M | 28% |
| Net rough imports | $2.03B | 19% |
| Net diamond account | -$412M | Deficit increased 280% |
| Polished exports (volume) | 2.2 million carats | 1% |
| Average price of polished exports | $809/carat | 2% |
| Full Year 2021 | Year-on-year change | |
| Polished exports | $23.83B | 63% |
| Polished imports | $1.77B | -15% |
| Net polished exports | $22.06B | 76% |
| Rough imports | $17.72B | 85% |
| Rough exports | $714M | 33% |
| Net rough imports | $17B | 89% |
| Net diamond account | $5.06B | 43% |
| Polished exports (volume) | 31.3 million carats | 53% |
| Average price of polished exports | $761/carat | 6% |
About the data: India, the world’s largest diamond-cutting center, is a net importer of rough and a net exporter of polished. As such, net polished exports — representing polished exports minus polished imports — will usually be a positive number. Net rough imports — calculated as rough imports minus rough exports — will also generally be in surplus. The net diamond account is total rough and polished exports minus total imports. It is India’s diamond trade balance, and shows the added value the nation creates by manufacturing rough into polished.
