Source: Lab-grown diamond LGD
Since 2018, India's lab-grown diamond import and export trade has grown at a rapid pace.
In just five years, rough lab-grown diamond imports increased from US$80 million in 2018 to US$1.474 billion in 2022,
an increase of nearly 19 times. Exports of lab-grown finished diamonds also increased from US$117 million to
US$1.715 billion, a 15-fold increase in the size of trade.
1. India's lab-grown diamond import and export trade will decline in 2023
After a rapid development from 2020 to 2022, the lab-grown diamond industry entered a period of adjustment in
2023.Affected by multiple factors such as the sharp decline in the price of lab-grown diamond rough and the increase in
India's lab-grown diamond production, India's rough lab-grown diamond imports in 2023 will be US$1.11 billion, down
25% year-on-year from 2022; India's exports of lab-grown finished diamonds amounted to US$1.368 billion, down 20%
from 2022.
2. India still needs to import a large number of lab-grown diamond rough from abroad
Although the Indian government has continued to increase its support for the lab-grown diamond industry in recent
years, in 2022 alone, it has successively introduced a series of policies such as exempting the electricity tax in the
production process of lab-grown diamonds, abolishing the import tax on lab-grown diamond seeds, formulating loan
policies to support the import of lab-grown diamond production equipment, and setting up a lab-grown diamond R&D
center to help India gain more market share in the upstream of the global lab-grown diamond industry chain.
Possibly affected by production technology, rough diamond quality and production capacity, India still needs to
import a large number of lab-grown rough diamonds from abroad, and the import value of lab-grown rough diamonds
will account for more than 80% of the export value of lab-grown diamond finished products in 2023.
3. The growth rate of India's lab-grown diamond import and export market share declined
With the continuous progress of lab-grown diamond technology, the global production capacity of lab-grown
diamonds continues to rise, and more and more brands have begun to join this field, consumer awareness and
acceptance continue to increase, and consumer demand has expanded, but due to intensified market competition and
large price reductions, the growth rate of India's market share of lab-grown diamond finished diamond exports has
slowed down. In 2023, India's exports of lab-grown finished diamonds will be US$1.368 billion, accounting for only 7.3%
of India's total exports of natural diamonds and lab-grown diamonds of US$18.645 billion, an increase of only 5%
compared with 2022. In the future, the competition in the lab-grown diamond industry will be more concentrated in
the downstream market, and only by providing high value-added lab-grown diamond products can lab-grown
diamonds gain a larger share in the market.