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RAPAPORT... Belgium's polished diamond exports in August surged 35.5 percent year on year to $548.1 million, according to data distributed by the Antwerp World Diamond Centre. The volume of carats exported fell 1.4 percent but the average price per carat jumped 37.5 percent to $2,112. Polished diamond imports increased 17.7 percent to $895.6 million, leaving net exports in a deficit of $347.5 million, or a 2.5 percent improvement from August 2012.
Rough imports increased 28.4 percent to $842.2 million, while rough exports jumped 15.5 percent to $496.4 million, leaving net imports of $345.8 million compared with $226.2 million one year earlier. Belgium carried a net diamond account deficit in August of $693.3 million, which was an increase of nearly 26 percent.
During the first eight months of 2013, Belgium's polished diamond exports have risen 3.9 percent year on year to $9.011 billion, while imports have fallen slightly, down 0.4 percent, to $8.815 billion, leaving net exports of $196 million compared with a deficit of $174 million in 2012.
Rough imports for the year to date jumped 11.2 percent to $8.876 billion and rough exports rose 10.8 percent to $9.631 billion, leaving an import deficit of $755 million compared with a deficit of $703 million in 2012. Belgium's net diamond account has surged 79.8 percent so far this year to $951 million.
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