Exports of polished diamonds hit their lowest level in nearly 20 years for the fiscal 12 months ending March 31 amid a slowdown in demand, according to data from the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC).
Shipments of polished diamonds slid 17% for the year to $13.29 billion, despite a year-on-year drop of only 1% in March as exporters scrambled to send out goods before US tariffs went into effect. Overall, total gem and jewelry exports fell 12% to $28.5 billion, the GJEPC data revealed.
“US buyers were loading up in March before the tariffs kicked in,” GJEPC vice chairman Shaunak Parikh told Reuters. Indian exporters were also rushing to ship out US orders first, so they wouldn’t get hit with those extra costs.”
Meanwhile, imports of rough diamonds slid 24% to $10.8 billion for the 12 months.
Lab-grown diamonds showed slightly more resiliency than natural, down 10% for the year to $1.27 billion, but up 7% in March to $132.1 million, according to the GJEPC.
Image: Polished diamonds. (Shutterstock)
