India’s diamond industry today (30 July) had its worst fears confirmed as the US announced all imports would be subject to 25 per cent tariffs, effective as of Friday (1 August).
In addition it will face an unspecified extra penalty for buying military equipment, oil and other goods from Russia.
Lingering hopes of a last-minute deal to avoid the additional tariffs were crushed when President Donald Trump singled out India, the world’s biggest diamond manufacturer, for special mention on his Truth Social platform.
“While India is our friend, we have, over the years, done relatively little business with them because their Tariffs are far too high, among the highest in the World, and they have the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary Trade Barriers of any Country,” he wrote.
Kirit Bhansali, chairman of the India’s Gem and Jewelry Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) reacted to the news saying: “This is a deeply concerning development. The Indian gem and jewellery sector, in particular, stands to be severely impacted.
“The United States is our single largest market, accounting for over $10 billion in exports – nearly 30% of our industry’s total global trade.
“A blanket tariff of this magnitude will place immense pressure on every part of the value chain.”
Colin Shah, managing director of diamond jewelry manufacturer Kama Jewelry, reacted to today’s news, said: “With the US being one of the key export destinations, this will severely impact the sectors like gems and jewellery that are heavily dependent on exports.
“Going ahead, we expect trade activities to remain muted with U.S. However, we also need to wait and watch how the situation unfolds.”
Less than two weeks ago, Trump said the US and India were “very close” to reaching an interim agreement, but those talks stalled, primarily over agricultural and dairy goods.
And only days ago US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters: “We continue to speak with our Indian counterparts. We’ve always had very constructive discussions with them.”
Source: IDEX
