U.S p olished imports declined by 4 p ercent to $23.1 billion in 2015, impacted by a relatively slower end to the year.
In volume terms , polished imports slipped 5 percent to almost 11.1 3 million carats, while the average price per carat of the imports edged up 1 percent to $2,076 , Rapaport reported .
Israel was the largest supplier of goods to the American market, even though imports from that country slump ed 10 percent to $8.32 billion, while imports from India slipped 3 percent to $7.37 billion, and those from Belgium decreased by 6 percent to $3.69 billion.
U.S. p olished exports dropped 12 percent to $18.32 billion, taking net polished imports – imports minus exports – to $4.78 billion, a jump of 53 percent from the previous year. This means the U.S., which is the world’s largest diamond consumer market, increased its net appetite for diamonds during the year, according to Rapaport 's calculations.
In r ough imports , there was a drop of 44 percent to $306 million and rough exports similarly plunged – down 48 percent to $192 million. Net rough imports – imports minus exports – fell 37 percent to $114 million.
The net diamond account, which represents total polished and rough imports less total exports – soared 48 percent to $4.89 billion, signaling a net growth in the country’s diamond consumption in 2015.
Polished trade slowed toward the end of the year, with December imports declining 13 percent year on year to $1.63 billion, while exports fell 9 percent to $1.26 billion. In December, the U.S. net diamond account dropped 22 percent to $377 million.
