India diamond mart growth is the highest, says DTC

Growth of the diamond market in India is the highest in the world for Diamond Trading Company (DTC), a De Beers Group company, according to Cherie Tandon Saldanha, the company's marketing director for India.

In volume terms, India is now the third largest market "" accounting for 7 per cent of the company's total business "" after the US (50 per cent) and Japan (13 per cent).

"DTC accounts for 50 per cent of the diamond sale "" both rough and finished "" in the country and, keeping in mind the growth potential, 37 of our 92 sightholders globally are based in India," said Saldanha, on the sidelines of the launch of the new Asmi collection by film star Kajol Devgan.

The company is now developing its five-year-old Nakshatra brand, worth over Rs 100 crore as the umbrella brand while the others -- Asmi, Sangini, Arisia -- will become sub-brands. Further, the company is hopeful that Asmi, till now a Rs 85-crore brand, will end the year with revenues worth Rs 100 crore.

The company is banking on the increasing disposable income with the working class to boost diamond sales in India. Traditionally, India exports 11 of every 12 rough diamonds imported after finishing.

The industry is, however, hopeful that this trend is likely to change, as growth in the domestic market is on an uptrend. The domestic demand is likely to grow at about 20 per cent in the calendar year 2005, said Saldanha.

The sector witnessed growth of 20 per cent in 2003 and 24 per cent in 2004. The diamond jewellery market in the country was valued at Rs 6,600 crore in 2004, with diamonds constituting 70 per cent of the total value "" the highest globally.

Further, the industry is seeing a surge in people's consumption of diamonds, not merely as an ornament but also as a good investment avenue. Saldanha said this trend is catching up, as DTC has been laying stress on value-added services, especially certification of the diamonds' carat value.

DTC is also working on projects of discovering diamond-mining sites within India. "The projects are on at sites in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, but it will take a few more years as the normal gestation period in the sector is about 10 years," Saldanha said.

DTC is hopeful that area around Golconda in Andhra Pradesh, which was the first diamond-mining site in the world, could again yield diamonds.