India, Australia diamond exports fall .

SURAT/SYDNEY: Even though the world is harping on the revival of economies, Surat’s diamond sector is getting bad news one after other.

In a latest blow to the diamond sector, India’s polished diamond exports climbed down by 31 per cent to $888.2 million in April.

According to data published by the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Centre (GJEPC), by volume, exports declined 17 per cent to 2.826 million carats, as the average price for polished exports dropped 17 per cent to $314.30 per carat.

India’s polished imports decreased 11 per cent to $442.1 million, and the country’s net polished exports, measuring the extent to which polished exports exceed imports, fell 43 per cent to $446.1 million.

Rough imports were down 36 per cent to $589.2 million for the month, and rough exports declined 7 per cent to $48.2 million. Net rough imports — rough imports less exports — dropped 38 per cent to $541 million. India’s May net diamond account, which measures the amount that total exports exceed total imports, fell 18 percent to a deficit of $94.9 million.

For the first five months of the year, India’s polished exports declined 34 per cent to $4.4 billion, and polished imports dropped 17 per cent to $2.5 billion. Net polished exports fell 47 per cent to $2 billion.

Rough imports for the period from January through May decreased 60 per cent to $1.8 billion, while rough exports were down 20 per cent to $263 million. Net rough imports fell 63 per cent to $1.5 billion. India’s net diamond account for the year was $424.4 million, compared with a deficit of $429.8 million a year earlier.

Again, Australia’s rough diamond exports fell 33 per cent to $77.9 million in the quarter that ended on March 31, 2009, impacted by a sharp decline in prices from a year earlier.

Exports by volume rose 39 per cent to 3.175 million carats as the average price dropped 52 per cent to $24.52 per carat. Production during the period doubled to 4.579 million carats, according to data published by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE). The country’s diamond imports fell 12 per cent to $81.1 million.

The increase in production came as a result of higher output at Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine, which accounts for about 96 per cent of Australia’s diamond production.

Rio Tinto earlier reported that Argyle’s production doubled in the March quarter to 4.4 million carats. Australia was the seventh-largest producer of rough diamonds in 2007.

Exports of gems other than diamonds decreased 17 per cent to $12.3 million during the three-month period. Refined gold exports grew 89 per cent to $4.4 billion, while copper exports fell 42 per cent to $828.9 million. Australia’s total export earnings from its mineral resources increased 41 per cent to $31.7 billion during the quarter.