A press release issued by the Ministry of Economy of Israel reported that polished exports from this country grew by 1% to $ 6.27 billion in 2014. Import of diamonds rose by 5% to $ 4.51 billion in the past year.
At the same time, diamond imports rose 1% to $ 4.02 billion in 2014, and their exports increased by 4% to $ 3.06 billion. The total volume of exports of diamonds and diamonds reached $ 9.324 billion, compared to $ 9.166 billion in 2013.
The department of the Ministry of Economy of Israel for precious stones and jewelry reported that the government's efforts are aimed at finding new, cheaper sources of supplies of diamonds in order to make this industry more competitive.
"The global diamond industry has faced several serious problems in 2014, among them - a significant reduction in lending to the industry, high prices for rough diamonds and low profitability," said Moti Ganz, chairman of the Israel Diamond Institute (IDI) ).
He also expressed confidence in the continued growth of the Israeli diamond industry in the new 2015. Ganz noted that active sales in the US and the renewed demand in the Asian region will help develop diamond trade in 2015.
Among all regional markets, the US continues to be the largest, as it accounts for 30.8% of all diamond and diamond exports from Israel. The second place is occupied by the market of Hong Kong with a share of 29.7%, the third - the Belgian market with a share of 8.5%.
Diamond Controller of the Ministry of Economy of Israel Shmuel Mordechai (Shmuel Mordechai) said that 2014 was very difficult for the diamond industry. However, the events scheduled for 2015, including the International Diamond Week in Ramat Gan in Israel, will contribute to the development of the international jewelry industry.