De Beers pushes for zero-tariff entry of cut and polished Indian diamonds into US
De Beers Group is working with the Indian government to create a zero-tariff policy for diamonds entering the United States after being cut and polished in India. The group has already met with commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal and urged him to speak with his US counterpart to enable the 'free flow of diamonds'.
Al Cook, CEO of De Beers Group, told ToI that 90% of diamonds are exported from India, and it is vital for the country to finalise a deal before 9 July. 'Britain and India seem to be doing very good jobs on working with tariff deals with the US. I am very confident that India will reach a deal ahead of July 9. We have already seen a deal in the UK,' he said.
Cook mentioned that apart from India and the US, most of the world allows the 'free flow of natural diamonds', as these are produced only in a few places globally, mostly in Africa. Since diamonds are mined in the US and then cut and polished in India, a zero-duty entry into the American market would not lead to any job losses, he said. 'We don't think there should be a tax on love,' the De Beers CEO said.
Cook also spoke of changing trends in the diamond trade. He said that earlier, the focus used to be on diamonds 'from India' and 'by India', but now it is shifting to 'for India' and 'to India', referring to the growing demand within the country. India is now the second-largest market for natural diamonds in the world.
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The British-born CEO said that the Indian natural diamond market is set to double to $20 billion by 2030, up from $10 billion at present. He said this growth is driven by rising aspirations among Indian buyers. According to him, India's natural diamond consumption rose by 12% year-on-year in 2024.
Commenting on the growing division between natural and lab-grown diamonds (LGDs), Cook said that with LGD wholesale value falling below $60 per carat, the importance of diamond testing technology has gone up. He said that India, which has overtaken China as the world's second-largest natural diamond market, is becoming more valuable to De Beers.
Cook said Indian consumers, unlike their US counterparts, are not shifting in large numbers towards LGDs. 'One can buy 20 LGDs for the price of 1 carat of natural diamond,' he told ET. He added that LGDs will continue to be 'mass-produced, low-cost, pretty and fun jewellery to wear.' He said Indian buyers prefer natural diamonds because they value uniqueness. 'Indian consumers are more sophisticated, and they like natural things. They believe in the uniqueness of natural diamonds and therefore the demand is growing,' he said.
De Beers recently closed its LGD jewellery brand Lightbox, which was launched in 2018. This move reflects the group's renewed focus on natural diamonds. Meanwhile, prices of some grades of rough diamonds are going up due to tight supply in the market.
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