“The export target for gems and jewellery was $42 billion versus last year in which we achieved approximately $39 billion. However, given that the first quarter itself was down by around 18%, we are expecting a decline of 10-15% in overall exports in this fiscal,” Vipul Shah, Chairman, Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said in an event organised by the industry body in the capital on Tuesday.
He added that all product categories were witnessing a decline since major consuming markets like the US and China were seeing a slowdown in demand. “We expected China to pick up after the pandemic but it has also been slow. It is not just for gems and jewellery but for all other sectors as well – there is a sharp fall in exports,” he stated.
As per provisional data on GJEPC website for April – June quarter, the overall gross exports of Gems & Jewellery at $7222.31 million (Rs. 60222.10 crores) is showing a decline of 28.08% (-22.29% in Rs term) as compared to $10042.30 million (Rs. 77499.44 crores) for the same period the previous year.
The respective product categories reflect the downward spiral evidently enough. For instance, the overall gross exports of Cut & Polished diamonds at $ 4426.02 million (Rs. 36923.01 crores) for the quarter shows a decline of 29.37% (-23.63% Rs. term) as compared to $6266.85 million (Rs. 48349.38 crores) for the same period of the previous year.
Similarly, provisional gross export of all kinds of Studded Gold jewellery for the first quarter was at$ 983.27 million (Rs. 8171.29 crores), a dip of 23.47% (-17.53% Rs. term) over the comparative figure of $ 1284.90 million (Rs. 9907.69 crores) in the previous year.
Shah of GJEPC added that the Council is looking at concerted efforts to boost demand. “The Council is actively organising roadshows in different markets. We had a roadshow in Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia and are looking to tap a lot of ASEAN countries. Since there is a slowdown in the US and China, we will explore other geographies and compensate for the demand lost in major buying markets,” he stated.
Shah said that even though supply chain issues were being faced in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine war, the priority right now was to give demand an uplift. “Right now, we are struggling with demand. So supply chain issues are not as much of a priority as long as we increase the demand,” he said.
He added that the only segment seeing a flat momentum was the plain gold jewellery segment. “All the other categories have seen a dip,” Shah stated.
The event was attended by a host of industry representatives and ambassadors. Introducing Miss India World Manushi Chhillar as the new global brand ambassador of GJEPC, the Council highlighted this as another initiative to resonate with a cross section of buyers.
