Rough diamond exports from Antwerp shot up by 55.44% in volume terms during May 2017, though they fell 2.86% in value terms, while polished diamond exports displayed an opposite trend, declining by 12.36% in volume terms during the month, but rising by 1.36% in value as compared to a year earlier, according to figures released by the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC).

During the month of May, Antwerp exported nearly 12.98 million carats of rough at a value of US$ 1.25 billion, a year-on-year jump of 55.44% in terms of volume but a 2.86% fall in value terms. The centre also reported a mixed bag in rough imports – with 8.77 mn carats of rough being imported at US$ 1.06 billion, a rise of 13.40% in volume terms, but a large y-o-y drop of 18.48% in value terms.

Trade in polished also followed a similar mixed pattern. In May 2017, the centre exported 422,711 cts of polished at a value of US$ 1.12 bn, a fall of 12.00% in volume terms but a rsie of 1.36% in value terms year-on-year. During this period, the centre imported 523,096 cts of polished at a value of US$ 1.00 bn, with a 4.59% rise in volume and a 8.79% rise in value terms as compared to May 2016.

Over the first five months of the year, rough exports of 55.6 mn cts at US$ 5.41 bn showed an increase of 13.53% in volume terms but a fall of 5.80% in value terms, while rough imports of 41.1 mn cts at US$ 4.67 bn registered a y-o-y fall of 3.31% in volume terms and of 16.04% in value terms.

During the year to date, polished exports stood at 21.06 mn cts at US$ 5.06 bn, down 13.57% in volume and 8.69% in value, while polished imports of 25.07 mn cts  at US$ 4.67 bn, dropped 7.38% in volume and 4.74% in value terms y-o-y.