Russian diamond mining companies are reducing the volume of exports to major markets, Kommersant reported citing statistics from India and Belgium.

According to India’s Ministry of Industry and Trade, in March imports of rough diamonds totaled 209,000 carats, which is half as much as in March 2021. In total, from January to March, Russia supplied 718 thousand carats to India, which is 45% below the level of the same period last year (1.3 million carats). In monetary terms, diamonds imported in India from Russia in March rose by 27% to $78 million.

Shipments of Russian diamonds to Europe in March also decreased in volume, the newspaper said. According to Eurostat, Russian imports to the EU (Belgium, Antwerp is one of the world’s main diamond trading centers) amounted to 1.5 million carats, which is three times less than in March 2021.

At the same time, analysts are confident that the problems with transportation and financial logistics will eventually be resolved. “We see the potential for growth in diamond prices and do not expect a significant reduction in ALROSA’s production,” said Boris Krasnozhenov, head of analytical research at Alfa Bank. He notes that demand for investment diamonds is also growing globally, which provides additional support for the industry.