De Beers Forevermark will invest $ 7 million in its second Forevermark Diamond Institute, which will be located in the Surat diamond processing center, CEO Stephen Lussier said, Israelidiamond.co.il reported. . The company believes that, despite the macroeconomic problems that India faces, its market will remain the fastest growing diamond market in the world, Lussier told the DNAIndia.com news agency.
Lussier added that the company's operations will be carried out by the company for the selection of diamonds, inscriptions and markings, as well as valuation of diamonds. "We want to be closer to our customers. This Institute will be the second after the Antwerp Institute in Belgium. "
CEO Forevermark also noted that the company is focused on expanding the scale of trade in its diamonds. "We increased our sales by almost 50%. The increase in sales of our products in India this year was more than 30%, and we hope to maintain these growth rates, "he said.
"India's share in the world market for polished diamonds is about 10%. The entire diamond market in India grew by 18% in 2012; in 2013 this figure will undoubtedly be less. But we believe that the recession will not last long. "
Another De Beers investment in the Indian market was the delivery by the International Institute for Classification and Research of Diamonds De Beers (International Institute of Diamond Grading and Research) for the automatic grading of diamond-mele. These devices for identifying synthetic diamonds were transferred to the Council for the Promotion of the Export of Precious Stones and Jewelry of India (Gems & Jewelery Export Promotion Council, GJEPC).