Seventy Indian diamond traders have shut down their Hong Kong offices in the past six months due to a decline in demand from Chinese consumers, who are increasingly favoring gold jewelry as an investment.
According to The Blunt Times, more than 10 percent of the 600 merchants from Surat and other parts of Gujarat, India, have returned home due to sluggish sales.
Demand for natural diamonds in China has plummeted by as much as 60 percent by volume since the onset of the Covid pandemic in 2020. Prices for polished diamonds have also dropped by at least 40 percent over the last three years.
Conversely, gold prices have seen a significant increase over the past four years, rising by 48 percent from $1,575 to $2,326 per troy ounce. Last month, gold prices hit an all-time high of $2,483 per troy ounce.
