Ehud Laniado tells the Story of India diamonds. India has the world’s longest history when it comes to diamonds. It was in India that diamonds were first found. The early finds transformed India instantaneously into a diamond consuming market – where maharajas and other nobility wore the first ever jewelry items made of diamonds.

1. By Ehud Arye Laniado
www.ehudlaniado.com
India, where it all began

2. DOC ID
Presentation by Ehud Arye Laniado
1
India has the world’s longest history
when it comes to diamonds. It was in
India that diamonds were first found.
A link to the full article can be found on the
last slide of the presentation
August 2015
The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity. None of the information made
available here shall constitute in any manner an offer or invitation or promotion to buy or to sell diamonds. No one
should act upon any opinion or information in this website (including with respect to diamonds values) without
consulting a professional qualified adviser.

3. DOC ID
India, where it all began
2August 2015
Ancient History

4. DOC ID
India, where it all began
3August 2015
• It is not clear precisely when diamonds were first found
along the riverbeds and streams of the Indian subcontinent,
however there are references to diamonds that go as far
back as the fourth century BC, when Alexander the Great
conquered India.
• What began as an early diamond-producing country and
trading center has become a global leader of
manufacturing and an important consumer market.

5. DOC ID
India, where it all began
4August 2015
• Golconda diamonds, mined in the in central Indian region of
Golconda, are among the most sought-after diamonds in the
world.
• As trade developed between India and Europe, diamonds
made their way to the royal European courts, and by the
1400s, diamond jewelry and diamonds spun into clothing had
become popular items.
• The high demand for Indian diamonds saw the country’s
diamond resources practically depleted by the late 1700s or
early 1800s.

6. DOC ID
India, where it all began
5August 2015
The twentieth century:
The industry organizes

7. DOC ID
India, where it all began
6August 2015
• In the 1960s, Indian diamond polishers decided to formally
organize the diamond industry in their country.
• They caught the eye of De Beers, and started courting the
industry giant for a steady supply of rough diamonds.
• The first sight was granted to a consortium called the Indian
Diamond Export Corporation.
• At first, they worked on low color and clarity goods intended
for the US market.

8. DOC ID
India, where it all began
7August 2015
• The Indian industry mainly cut and polished smaller-sized
diamonds, weighing 0.20 carats and less.
• It was a humble beginning. In 1966, polished diamond
exports from India totaled a mere $17 million.
• However, this modest start, which faced a long road ahead,
constituted the foundation of a new world diamond center.

9. DOC ID
India, where it all began
8August 2015
A new age for diamonds

10. DOC ID
India, where it all began
9August 2015
• In 1985, large deposits of diamonds were found in Western
Australia, and India’s polishers were the best equipped to
polish these diamonds, which were mostly of low color and
clarity.
• Huge quantities of rough diamonds started pouring in,
which required larger workshops. Assisted by growing
finance facilities from local banks, these workshops quickly
developed into large factories.
• This immense transition included shifting away from the
large traditional polishing wheels called “Ghantis,” and
adopting modern tools and machinery in their place.

11. DOC ID
India, where it all began
10August 2015
• The burgeoning industry developed new understandings for
how to polish larger stones and higher-value goods.
• Local factories are among the largest and most modern in
the world with highly skilled workforces, employing at peak
nearly one million workers.
• Over time, these developments turned the city of Surat into
the world’s largest diamond manufacturing center.
• Mumbai’s diamond families set up offices in Antwerp and
expanded their global footprint.

12. DOC ID
India, where it all began
11August 2015
The global footprint grows

13. DOC ID
India, where it all began
12August 2015
• In recent years, many Indian companies have expanded
their activities to the growing diamond center of Dubai.
• A third center, also in Mumbai, developed in the free zone
SEEPZ. This zone houses polishing facilities, but it is
mostly home to jewelry manufacturing.
• The combination of large quantities of rough diamond
imports, constantly improving polishing skills, availability of
financing and a local chain of supply from rough to jewelry
manufacturing, has transformed India into the global
diamond power house that it is today.

14. DOC ID
India, where it all began
13August 2015
• By the 1990s and early 2000s, the near-gem type goods
were still being polished mostly in India. In recent decades,
India dethroned Israel as the world’s largest diamond
exporter.
• In the early 1990s, the Indian economy took a turn towards
more free market policies, giving rise to a new middle class
that started buying diamond jewelry alongside the
traditional gold jewelry.

15. DOC ID
India, where it all began
14August 2015
• De Beers decided to include the Indian consumer market in
its generic marketing campaigns, launching jewelry
lines, and thus the Indian diamond industry found an
important additional source of income – its own local
community.

16. DOC ID
India, where it all began
15August 2015
The Bharat Diamond Bourse

17. DOC ID
India, awhere it all began
16August 2015
• The next stage in the development of the country’s
diamond industry was the erection of the Bharat Diamond
Bourse (BDB).
• The BDB is the world’s largest diamond exchange: 190,000
square meters spread over eight towers located in a 20
acre enclosed compound. It houses a trading floor, some
2,500 small, mid-size and large diamond companies.
• Today, India polishes 11 of every 12 diamonds, and
accounts for an estimated 70% of the world’s diamond
exports.
• An estimated 600,000 people work in the industry today.

18. DOC ID
India, where it all began
17August 2015
Polished diamond exports: $23.2 billion.
Polished imports: $6.94 billion.
Rough imports: $16.8 billion.
Rough exports: $1.42 billion.
Gross trade 2014-2015

19. DOC ID
India, where it all began
18
The views expressed here are solely those of the author in his private capacity. None of the information made
available here shall constitute in any manner an offer or invitation or promotion to buy or to sell diamonds. No one
should act upon any opinion or information in this website (including with respect to diamonds values) without
consulting a professional qualified adviser.
August 2015
A full version of the article can be found here:
http://www.ehudlaniado.com/home/index.php/news/entry/india-where-it-all-began