U.S. polished diamond imports fell 5.3 percent on the year in March and the average price per carat slipped.
Polished diamond shipments to the United States fell to $2.04 billion, and the average price per carat similarly dropped by 5.3 percent to $1,895.
Diamond imports by weight were little changed at 1.1 million carats.
Polished diamond exports plummeted 15 percent to $1.48 billion, driving net imports up 33 percent to $559 million, Rapaport reported.
Rough diamond imports soared 80 percent to $45 million, while rough exports almost tripled to $26 million, lifting net rough imports up 19 percent to $19 million.
The net diamond account, reflecting the difference between net imports and exports, was $435 million compared with $118 million a year ago.
In the first three months of the year, polished diamond imports fell 2.9 percent to $5.56 billion and polished exports fell 4 percent to $4.7 billion, resulting in net polished imports increasing 3.5 percent to $858 million.
