Kolkata: India will lead the global natural diamond demand in 2024 as the country is in a better financial state than other major buyers of the rock like the US and China, David Kellie, CEO of Natural Diamond Council (NDC), has said.
NDC, the global authority on natural diamonds, has pegged the size of the global diamond market at $100.4 billion.
“The Indian market remains the strongest growth market in the world because of its strong financial position and changing demographics,” Kellie told ET in an interaction. “Indian women are now financially stronger, and they are driving the demand. The key economic indicators in the US are not yet favourable for a demand recovery in diamond purchase,” he said.
The NDC CEO said there will be a polarisation between natural diamond and lab-grown diamond markets as the latter grows as a category.
Commenting on the G7 countries’ sanctions on diamonds originating from Russia due to the country’s war with Ukraine, Kellie said it is a complicated process that is underway.
“I think everyone knows what the intent of G7 is. It wants to be cautious and also wants to achieve its own end goals. Clearly, they understand that they do not want to have a hugely negative impact on those markets that depend on such diamonds. That includes India and South Africa. The challenge will be the traceability issue of the diamonds and let’s see how that pans out,” he said.
Natural diamonds will become rarer as no new major mines are coming up, Kellie said. “Some mines are looking to extend their lives by another 15 years, but the cost to do that will be huge. The deeper you go into mine to dig out diamonds, the more it will cost… So, natural diamonds will become expensive according to me,” he said.
Vipul Shah, chairman of Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council, said the Indian diamond trade expects a 20% growth in diamond consumption in 2024 as compared to 2023 with demand rising for small diamonds as well as solitaires. “A large chunk of this demand is coming from tier-2 and tier-3 cities as organised retail jewellers expand their footprints in these cities,” he said.
“Our revenue from diamond jewellery sales has grown to Rs 3203 crore as of January 14, 2024 in FY2024 from Rs.3148 crore in FY2023. We aim to touch Rs.4100 crore in diamond jewellery sales in FY2024,” said MP Ahammed, chairman of Malabar Gold & Diamonds.
There are three key demand drivers for natural diamond in India – enduring allure, cost-effectiveness and quality assurance. The value proposition of natural diamonds is based on their inherent rarity and uniqueness. That’s why eternal emotions are best expressed through diamond jewellery.
The Malabar group chairman said “Thanks to persistent consumer awareness campaigns by industry bodies like Natural Diamond Council and our continued campaigns on our diamond jewellery collections as well as our quality and certification assurance, we have been witnessing steady demand for diamond jewellery in India both in metro cities and in tier 2 and tier 3 cities. If the natural diamond supply chain functions in line with the evolving market dynamics and the jewellery retail industry as a whole comes together to build greater consumer confidence and demystify certain common misconceptions, the pathway for sustainable demand for diamond jewellery will further be broadened across major markets and in emerging markets in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, as there is unmet demand for diamond in India.”
