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Belgium Diamond Trade Slows
Sep 11, 2019 4:08 AM
By Rapaport News
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RAPAPORT... Belgium’s diamond trade continued its decline in August, with
rough and polished shipments slowing. Polished exports slumped 34%, reflecting
lower volumes and a steep drop in the average price, according to data from the
Antwerp World Diamond Centre. Imports and exports have fallen since the start
of the year amid an oversupply in the midstream and weak demand from diamond
manufacturers.
| Millions unless stated otherwise |
Aug 2019 |
Year-on-year change |
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| Polished exports |
$323 |
-34% |
| Polished imports |
$575 |
-19% |
| Net polished exports |
-$252 |
Deficit widened 14% |
| Rough imports |
$461 |
-28% |
| Rough exports |
$323 |
-33% |
| Net rough imports |
$138 |
-11% |
| Net diamond account |
-$390 |
Deficit widened 3% |
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| Polished exports: volume |
170,986 carats |
-11% |
| Average price of polished exports |
$1,889/carat |
-25% |
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Jan-Aug 2019 |
Year-on-year change |
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| Polished exports |
$7,134 |
-8% |
| Polished imports |
$7,403 |
-5% |
| Net polished exports |
-$270 |
Deficit widened 145% |
| Rough imports |
$5,355 |
-28% |
| Rough exports |
$6,045 |
-30% |
| Net rough imports |
-$689 |
Deficit narrowed 42% |
| Net diamond account |
$419 |
-61% |
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| Polished exports: volume |
2.8 million carats |
-11% |
| Average price of polished exports |
$2,518/carat |
4% |
Source: Antwerp World Diamond Centre
About the data: Belgium is usually a net exporter of polished diamonds.
As such, net polished exports — representing polished
exports minus polished imports — will normally be a positive number. The nation
is also a net exporter of rough. While Antwerp is home to some high-value
manufacturing, its main role in the market is as a facilitator of rough-diamond
trading, with companies from around the world coming to the city to buy rough.
The net
diamond account is total rough and polished exports minus
total imports. It is Belgium’s diamond trade balance, and shows the added value
the nation creates by exporting rough or manufacturing it into polished.
Image: The Antwerp diamond district. (AWDC)
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Tags:
Antwerp, Antwerp World Diamond Centre, AWDC, Belgium, exports, imports, Rapaport News, trade data
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