WASHINGTON: U.S. polished diamond imports surged 33 percent to $2.18 billion in September. The month was the busiest this year after May, which is propped up by the JCK Las Vegas show in June. By weight, imports rose 7 percent from a year earlier to 988,097 carats, according to government data. The average price jumped 24 percent to $2,202 per carat.
Polished exports increased 18 percent to $1.73 billion, which meant net polished imports more than doubled to $446 million. Rough diamond imports grew almost fivefold to $173 million, while rough exports slid 20 percent to $12 million, leaving net rough imports more than eight times higher at $161 million. The country’s net diamond account for September more than tripled to $607 million. During the first nine months of the year, polished imports increased 0.6 percent to $17.8 billion and polished exports increased 0.8 percent to $14.48 billion, resulting in net imports being flat at $3.31 billion.
