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India's Gem and Jewelry Exports surge to US$17 Bn in 2005

January 2006 

  Total exports of the Indian gems and jewelry sector in 2005 grew to US$17 billion from US$14.8 billion in 2004 according to figures from the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) of India.

The growth in the sector was primarily driven by the cut and polished diamonds segment, which registered growth of 19.29 percent in value terms and 9.74 percent in volume terms.

The export sales of cut and polished diamonds grew to US$12.3 billion in 2005 from US$10.3 billion in 2004, while total volume of cut and polished diamonds grew to 48,700,000 carats in 2005 from 44,300,000 carats in 2004.

“The industry has shown tremendous resilience to surpass its export targets under extremely competitive environment. Coming years are going to be an acid test for the industry and we expect the government to continue its support to enable us to compete with China and other global market on equal grounds,” says Bakul R. Mehta, Chairman of the GJEPC.

The U.S., Hong Kong and United Arab Emirates were the top exporting markets for the Indian gem and jewelry products followed by Singapore and Belgium accounting for nearly 80 percent of total exports. On the import front, total imports of gem and jewelry grew by 31.99 percent to US$13.86 billion in 2005 from US$10.50 billion in 2004.

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