Indian Gems & Jewellery Industry Set Firmly on a Growth Trajectory

The Indian gems and jewellery sector is one of the most dynamic, fast growing sectors of the Indian economy. The fact that India is the world’s largest source for trained, skilled and adaptive manpower along with liberalized government policies, provide a conducive environment for bi-lateral businesses. It is these factors that attribute to the continuous growth of this sector, thereby making it a leading foreign exchange earner and the fastest growing sector. Subsequently, the industry’s growth over the years is claimed primarily to be attributed to the continuous efforts put in by the {{Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). }} %% {{ Growth Graph on Upswing: }}$$ From being the world’s largest manufacturer of cut and polished diamonds to becoming the leading international gems and jewellery hub, India’s gems and jewellery sector is now set on a growth trajectory. During the period April-March 2005, the total exports of the Indian gems & jewellery sector grew to US$ 16,669.11 million (Rs. 73,304.29 crore) as compared to US$ 15,678.14 million (Rs. 70,245.95 crore) in the same period last year. %%{{ Diamonds in the Vanguard: }}$$ The growth in the sector was primarily driven by the {{Cut & Polished Diamonds (CPD)}} segment, which witnessed a remarkable increase of 6.07%. The export sales of CPD grew to US$ 11,860.49 million during FY 2005-06 from US$ 11,181.56 million in the corresponding period in FY 2004-05, while total volume of CPD were at 432.72 lakh carats during FY 2005-06 as compared to 479.47 lakh carats in the corresponding period in FY 2004-05. %%{{Gold Jewellery Exports}} registered a growth of 1.28% with exports rising from US$ 3812.88 million in 2004-05 to US$ 3,861.57 million in 2005-06. %%{{Colored Gemstones}} grew by 21.05% to US$ 233 million in FY 2005-06 s compared to US$ 192.75 million in 2004-05. %% The United States, Hong Kong and UAE were the top export markets for the Indian gem and jewellery products accounting for 28%, 21% and 15% of the total exports followed by Singapore and Belgium accounting for 9% and 8% respectively. %%{{Imports also Up: }}$$ On the import front, total imports of gems and jewellery grew by 11.79% with imports increasing from US$ 11,640.21 million in March 04-April 05 to US$ 13,013.11 million in March 2005-April 06. Rough diamonds were imported to the tune of US$ 8,708.98 million; Gold bars for US$ 856.60 million and cut & polished diamonds for US$ 3,009.02 million. %% India’s gems and jewellery industry employs close to 1.3 million people across the country. It is interesting to note that out of this 1.3 million, the diamond industry alone employs nearly 1 million people in the country. With the kind of impetus that the gems and jewellery industry is receiving, especially the forward integration, the growth chart is only bound to register an upward surge. %% {{Ambitious Bourse Getting Ready: }}$$ Finally, on the anvil is the {{Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB)}}, one of the largest monoliths ever to be built in Asia. The Bharat Diamond Bourse is an urban conglomerate of place, people and activities pertaining to diamond trading. The Bourse will be trading hub with all facilities like Customs, Banks, Freight et al so, those traders can come to India and trade directly. The BDB will be India’s Diamond Trading Hub, which is located at the Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai with a total area of 162,000 sqm. This grand project worth US$ 9.5m will be fully operational in 2007. %% The complex will provide world-class facilities to the diamond community. The Bharat Diamond Bourse also further aims to enhance the already predominant position of the Indian diamond industry in the world as diamonds account for 74% of the total exports of the gems & jewellery industry, with gold jewellery accounting for 24% while colored gemstones and other goods account for 1% each respectively.