Growth due to high consumer turnout in US retail shops; the US contributes nearly 38 per cent of global sales.
Driven primarily by the growth in cut and polished diamonds, overall jewellery exports from India rose a staggering 46.89 per cent in 2010-11.
According to the data compiled by the apex trade body the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), jewellery exports in the financial year 2010-11 surged to $43,139.2 million as against $29,358.5 million in the previous year. Jewellery sector contributes 16.67 per cent to India’s total merchandise exports.
Rajiv Jain, chairman of GJEPC attributed the growth to high consumers turnout in the US retail shops. The US alone contributes nearly 38 per cent of global jewellery sales and hence, is a significant market. Varda Shine, CEO of Diamond Trading Company (DTC), a marketing arm of the global diamond mining giant De Beers, had recently said US consumers have started coming back to jewellery stores.
The significant rise in exports was due to the price increase in raw materials. Gold and silver prices have gone up by 28 per cent and 133 per cent respectively in the last one year. Similarly, prices of precious stones have perked up between 25-40 per cent in the last one year.
Considering the price rise as an occasional increase, the actual growth in volume terms was just 15 per cent, said Jain.
Also Read
The growth in the sector was largely driven by cut and polished diamonds which registered an increase of 54.91 per cent at $28,251.9 million in 2010-2011 as compared to $18,243.9 million in the previous year. Cut and polished diamonds accounted for 65.49 per cent of the total exports baskets with gold jewellery comprising 29.86 per cent while colour gemstones and other accounted for 4.69 per cent.
Gold jewellery exports also rose 33.27 per cent $12,885.6 million in 2010-11 from $9,678.7 million in the previous financial year. Coloured gemstone exports also increased 9.68 per cent in dollar terms with sector witnessing a rise from $286.78 million in 2009-2010 to $314.54 million in 2010-11.
Financial year 2010-11 saw UAE emerging as the largest exporting destination with 47 per cent of exports to the market, followed by Hong Kong with 22 per cent and the US with 11 per cent of exports.
“On Tuesday, the industry is looking at a staggering growth of 46.67 per cent, the most we have seen in the past three years. India on Tuesday is looked upon as one of the leading players in the global arena and at GJEPC we believe that this growth path will continue in the coming year as well,” said Jain.
Emphasising the need to promote brand India in the global market, Jain said, “Cutting every 9 out of 10 diamond pieces mined globally, Indian gem and jewellery industry on Tuesday enjoys a leadership position in manufacturing of diamonds, which is attributed to the in-house expertise of cutting and polishing. The world is eyeing India for trade across various sectors like diamonds, colour stones or jewellery. The focus is now to take India a level up in the value chain and promote the sector as a design destination globally.”