The Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council of India (GJEPC) has released monthly data on the country's rough and polished diamond trade for June 2024.
Overall gross exports of gems and jewellery continued to decline, falling 14.8% to $1.9 billion in June, compared with $2.24 billion in the same period last year.
After two months of growth, total gross imports of precious stones also began to decline in June. It amounted to $1.55 billion, which is 16.5% less than June last year with $1.85 billion. In general, the first quarter of the new financial year (starts April 1) showed a decrease in exports by 7.44% compared to the same period of the previous year, and a slight increase in imports by 2.9% compared to the second quarter of last year.
Polished diamond exports in June stood at $1.02 billion, which is 26.35% less than June last year of $1.38 billion. Imports fell by 35.9% to $77.25 million compared to the same period in 2023, when it reached $120.51 million.
At the end of the first quarter of the 2023-2024 financial year, India imported rough diamonds worth $3.39 billion, which was a 15.4% decrease from $4.0 billion in the same period of last year.
Gross exports of lab-grown diamonds (LGD) in June 2024 declined by 8.96% from $97.57 million (June 2023) to $88.83 million. Quarterly data also shows a slight decrease of 5.8% compared to the similar period of last year.
In June, India exported plain and studded gold jewelry worth $608.01 million, which is 6.36% higher than the same period of last year ($571.63 million). The start of the new financial year for this metric showed a 12.25% rise compared to last year.
Hélène Tarin, Editor-in-Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough&Polished
