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This Year, Antwerp’s Diamond Trade Has Been Up and Down
The Belgian city’s figures have fluctuated from month to month so far in 2016, making it difficult to draw conclusions about the remainder of the year.
The Antwerp World Diamond Center reported that both imports and exports of rough diamonds rose in the first six months of the year, though trade was uneven from month to month.
Antwerp--The Antwerp World Diamond Center recently reported that the city’s overall diamond trade was up in volume terms through the first six months of the year, though the figures have fluctuated from month to month.
From January to June, 111.1 million carats of rough and polished diamonds were traded on the market in this Belgian city, compared with 102.8 million carats in the first half of 2015.
Breaking down the trade for polished and unpolished goods shows that the rough diamond market fared better than the market for finished goods.
The amount of imported rough diamonds was up 6 percent in volume terms and 2 percent in value terms when compared with last year, the AWDC said. Imports fell in January, rose in the February to May time frame, and then dropped again in June.
“While the rough diamond market appears to be making a cautious recovery as compared to last year, the polished diamond trade continues to find it tough going. The significant monthly fluctuations demonstrate that it is too early to draw far-reaching conclusions.”Rough diamond exports, meanwhile, rose 13 percent in volume terms and 5 percent in value terms. Like imports of rough, they got off to a slow start early in the year, before peaking in February and then declining from March through June.
Polished diamond trading followed roughly the same pattern, with stronger months alternating with much weaker ones.
Overall, in the first six months of the year, polished diamond imports fell 11 percent in volume terms and about 10 percent in value terms. Exports dropped 9 percent in volume and 8 percent in value.
“While the rough diamond market appears to be making a cautious recovery as compared to last year, the polished diamond trade continues to find it tough going,” the AWDC said in releasing its first-half figures. “The significant monthly fluctuations demonstrate that it is too early to draw far-reaching conclusions.”
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