Indian Gem and Jewelry Industry Fiscal 2012-2013 Earnings up 154%.

(IDEX Online News) – The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) recently announced that the Indian gem and jewelry sector contributed $2.13 billion to the economy in terms of foreign exchange earnings for fiscal 2012-2013, up 154 percent compared to the previous year.

Other highlights of the year included a 12.65-percent increase in rough diamond imports and a 33-percent growth in the export of gold jewelry. Total gem and jewelry exports for the period totaled $39.033 billion.

Cut and polished diamond imports dropped 61.45 percent, indicating a huge cut in India’s foreign exchange spending and a reduction in the country’s current account deficit (CAD).

“The results have been quite favorable this year,” said Vipul Shah, chair of the GJEPC. “The industry has strived hard towards reducing India’s current account deficit by controlling imports and increasing exports. The industry’s contribution towards India’s exchequer has also seen a staggering rise of 154 percent.”

Shah added, “At a time when the industry was going through a challenging period, governmental regulations related to the reintroduction of bonded warehouse facility for diamond exporters and revision in [the] duty drawback rate facility for gold jewelry exporters has helped strengthen the industry further.”

Commenting on the outlook for 2013-2014 Shah said it was positive with an estimated growth of 12 to 15 percent in overall gem and jewelry exports. “The US and Japanese jewelry markets will bounce back with an estimated 5-percent growth while China will remain stable at 10-percent growth,” he said.

The GJEPC said that proposals for the current fiscal year include regulatory measures such as introduction of consignment imports of diamonds, the start of rough diamonds tenders and auctions in India as well as the formation of a committee for looking into lending norms for banks to the diamond and jewelry sector.


Source : idexonline.com