Who Rules the Diamond Trade?

Diamonds are a globally traded commodity, with a handful of countries dominating exports of both rough gemstones from mines and polished diamonds from cutting centers. Over the past five years (2020–2024), the diamond trade has experienced wild swings – from a pandemic-induced plunge to a post-pandemic boom and recent declines. In this period, India has consistently led the world in diamond exports by value, thanks to its massive diamond cutting and polishing industry. Other top players include the United States, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Belgium, which together account for the lion’s share of global diamond export value. Notably, some of these countries (like Botswana or Russia) produce diamonds from mines, while others (like India or Belgium) largely import, cut/polish, and re-export diamonds. Below, we examine year-by-year which countries “ruled” the diamond trade by export value, highlighting major shifts and milestones along the way.

Global Diamond Export Trends (2020–2024)

The period 2020–2024 saw significant fluctuations in global diamond export totals, driven by external events and market dynamics. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic brought the diamond industry to a near standstill – global diamond exports fell to about $76.4 billion (down roughly one-third from pre-pandemic levels). By 2021, however, the trade came roaring back. Worldwide diamond exports rebounded to approximately $109–114 billion in 2021, approaching or even exceeding 2019’s level as consumer demand recovered sharply.

This boom continued into 2022, which marked a record high – global diamond exports reached around $131.5 billion, the highest in recent memory. Surging demand (especially for jewelry) and high prices in the first half of 2022 pushed many countries to new export records. However, the tide turned thereafter: 2023 saw a major correction, with global diamond export value dropping by roughly 25% to about $99 billion. A combination of cooling consumer demand, price adjustments, and geopolitical factors (notably sanctions on Russian diamonds) contributed to this decline. By 2024, the global export total had slipped further to $78.6 billion – almost back to the pandemic slump level. In fact, diamond exports shrank about 28% in 2024 compared to the prior year, reflecting a sluggish market.

Throughout these ups and downs, the same five countries have dominated diamond exports by value. As of 2024, the top five exporters – India, the United States, Hong Kong, UAE, and Belgium – collectively accounted for over 70% of all diamonds sold abroad. Asia in particular has led the trade: in 2024, Asian countries (especially India, Hong Kong, and the UAE) contributed nearly 60% of the world’s diamond export value. Below we break down each year’s top diamond-exporting nations and how their rankings shifted from 2020 to 2024.

Year-by-Year Leaders in Diamond Exports

2020: Pandemic Plunge and Steady Leader

2020 was a tumultuous year for the diamond industry. With mines and trading centers shut for months, global trade contracted sharply. Yet, India remained the top diamond exporter in 2020, despite seeing a steep drop in its export value. India exported roughly $15.2 billion in diamonds in 2020 – a dramatic decline from about $22 billion the year before, due to COVID-19 disruptions. This still made India the #1 exporter, reflecting its huge polishing industry.

Other major players also saw their exports halved or worse. Belgium (home to the Antwerp diamond hub) exported about $8.2 billion in diamonds in 2020 (down from ~$12–13 billion in 2019). The United States, Hong Kong, and the UAE each likely shipped on the order of ~$6–9 billion that year, as the global slump hit trading centers across America, Asia, and the Middle East. These four, alongside India, comprised the top five diamond exporters of 2020, albeit with much lower figures than usual. The pandemic-induced plunge essentially froze the usual ranking – India held the top spot, and the U.S., Hong Kong, Belgium, and UAE followed (in varying order) within a fairly close range.

2021: A Record Rebound

In 2021, the diamond trade staged an impressive comeback. Widespread vaccination and economic recovery led to soaring demand for diamonds, and export values jumped across the board. Total global diamond exports rebounded to about $109.5 billion in 2021, roughly a 40% increase from 2020. Many countries hit or surpassed pre-pandemic export levels.

India cemented its leadership, exporting roughly $24.7 billion in diamonds in 2021 – more than 50% higher than its 2020 value. India alone accounted for about 22.6% of the world’s diamond exports that year. The United States emerged as the second-largest exporter with about $14.8 billion (13.5% of the global share). Close on its heels was Hong Kong, at approximately $14.0 billion (12.8% share), reflecting Hong Kong’s role as a key transshipment and re-export hub for diamonds into China and other Asian markets.

Belgium ranked fourth, exporting around $12.5 billion in 2021. Notably, this was a $4.3 billion increase from its 2020 exports – an indicator of Antwerp’s recovery after the lockdowns. The UAE (particularly Dubai) was close behind, with about $12.2 billion in diamond exports in 2021. The UAE’s rise was striking: by 2021 it had firmly joined the top five, benefitting from booming rough diamond trade through Dubai. These five countries – India, USA, Hong Kong, Belgium, and UAE – were clearly the giants of 2021, together representing roughly 71% of global diamond export value.

2022: New Highs and Shifting Positions

2022 was a banner year for the diamond trade. Fueled by strong consumer spending on jewelry (especially in the first half of the year), worldwide diamond exports reached an estimated $131.5 billion – the highest in at least a decade. Several countries hit all-time highs in export values. India, for example, led the global diamond export market with about $26.1 billion in exports in 2022, its peak performance of the five-year span. The United States was firmly in second place, exporting roughly $20.3 billion in diamonds (about 16.5% of the world total). Both countries benefitted from surging demand; the U.S. in particular re-exported large volumes of polished diamonds to Hong Kong, the UAE, and other markets in this boom year.

The biggest shake-up in 2022 was the UAE vaulting into third place. The UAE’s diamond exports shot up to about $17.5 billion, surpassing Hong Kong for the first time. This leap was partly attributed to changes in trade flows – for instance, more Russian rough diamonds were routed through Dubai after Western sanctions, boosting the UAE’s export figures. Hong Kong still had a strong year with roughly $14.3 billion exported, but it slipped to fourth place in 2022’s ranking. Belgium rounded out the top five with about $13.4 billion in diamond exports. Not far behind, Israel (a major polished diamond center) also had a notable year – its diamond exports were around $11 billion in 2022 (though it remained just outside the top five). Botswana, the leading African diamond producer, likewise enjoyed high rough diamond sales in 2022, contributing to an export total estimated over $7 billion for that year. In short, 2022 set new milestones: it was the high-water mark for diamond export value, and it saw the UAE’s ascent reshape the usual top-five order.

2023: Sanctions and Cooling Demand

2023 proved to be a turning point, as the exuberance of 2021–22 gave way to a more cautious market. Global diamond exports fell significantly – down about 25% year-on-year to $98.9 billion – due to a combination of weaker consumer demand (especially as inflation squeezed spending) and the continued impact of sanctions on Russian diamonds. Many top exporters saw double-digit drops in value.

Even so, the top five countries remained the same – and their rankings reverted to the pre-2022 order. India held the #1 spot with roughly $18.2 billion in diamond exports for 2023, about 18.4% of the global total. This was a decline from India’s 2022 peak, reflecting softer demand for polished gems, but still comfortably ahead of other nations. In second place, the United States exported about $16.8 billion (17% share), and Hong Kong came in third with approximately $14.6 billion. Notably, Hong Kong was one of the few top exporters to increase its exports versus 2022 (a small 4% uptick), as demand in China/Hong Kong showed signs of recovery.

The UAE, by contrast, experienced one of the steepest drops. Its diamond exports in 2023 were about $10.3 billion – nearly 48% lower than the prior year’s value. This drop pushed the UAE back down to fourth place. The decline was widely linked to the sanctioning of Russian diamonds: much of the extraordinary 2022 volume that had flowed through Dubai was curtailed or delayed in 2023. Belgium remained fifth with roughly $9.7 billion exported (about 9.8% of the world total), a decrease of ~27% from 2022 levels.

Outside the top five, 2023’s shifts were also telling. Russia’s official diamond exports plummeted to about $2.2 billion (down over 53% from 2022 by value), illustrating the impact of international restrictions – many Russian stones were stockpiled or had to find alternative routes. Meanwhile, African producers like Botswana saw sharp declines in export proceeds as prices fell: Botswana’s diamond export value dropped from roughly $7.2 billion in 2022 to $4.3 billion in 2023. Despite this 40% fall, Botswana was still the seventh-largest exporter by value and the leading exporter within Africa in 2023. Overall, 2023 was a year of retrenchment in the diamond trade, with the rankings stabilizing but most leaders exporting far less than in the prior boom.

2024: A Downturn to Pre-Pandemic Levels

By 2024, the diamond export landscape saw continued contraction. Global export value (≈$78.6 billion) was back to roughly the same level as in 2020, marking a full reversal of the earlier boom. Year-on-year, 2024’s worldwide diamond exports were down over 28% compared to 2023. This decline has been attributed to sluggish consumer demand for luxury goods, an oversupply of certain diamond categories, and the growing market share of lab-grown diamonds (which are not tracked in the same export statistics).

Despite the downturn, the hierarchy of top exporters in 2024 did not change. India again ranked first, shipping about $14.4 billion worth of diamonds (approximately 18.3% of global exports). The United States was second with roughly $12.4 billion (15.8%), narrowly ahead of Hong Kong’s $12.2 billion (15.5%). These top three were relatively close in 2024, as India’s exports fell more sharply than those of the U.S. and Hong Kong. The UAE remained fourth, exporting around $10.1 billion in diamonds. Belgium stayed fifth at approximately $7.0 billion. All of these leading exporters saw significant drops in value compared to the year before – for example, Belgium’s 2024 diamond exports were about 27% lower than in 2023, and Russia’s exports fell further (down 54% year-on-year) as sanctions persisted. One bright spot was the United Kingdom, which, while not a top-five player, saw its diamond export value jump by 75% in 2024 (albeit from a relatively small base) – a rare increase in a year when most countries saw declines.

In summary, by 2024 the diamond export trade had largely reset to a quieter state, with values similar to the immediate aftermath of the pandemic. India, the U.S., Hong Kong, the UAE, and Belgium continued to “rule” the diamond trade in terms of export value, just as they had for several years. However, the gaps between them narrowed as the overall pie shrank. The table below summarizes the annual top five diamond-exporting countries and their export values from 2020 through 2024:

(Export values are in nominal USD. “USA” = United States of America; “UAE” = United Arab Emirates. Figures for 2020 are approximate, reflecting the pandemic impact.)

Key Takeaways and Industry Outlook

Examining the 2020–2024 period reveals a few clear trends in who rules the diamond export trade:

• India’s Dominance: India has been the unchallenged leader in diamond exports by value each year. Its vast cutting and polishing industry (handling an estimated 90% of the world’s rough diamonds by volume) enables it to export huge quantities of finished diamonds. Even though India mines very few diamonds itself, it effectively “produces” the highest export value by adding cutting/polishing value to rough stones imported from elsewhere. India’s export leadership was especially pronounced in boom years (2021–22) but even in leaner times it remains on top.

• Trading Hubs in the Top Ranks: The United States, Hong Kong, and the UAE – none of which are major diamond mining countries – consistently rank among the top exporters. The U.S. role is explained by its large diamond trading companies and jewelry manufacturers who import and then re-export stones (often to satisfy global supply chains or to send polished gems to overseas markets). Hong Kong serves as a critical gateway to China’s consumer market, re-exporting diamonds throughout Asia. Dubai (UAE) has rapidly grown into a central rough diamond trading hub in the last decade; by 2021–22, it rivaled traditional centers like Antwerp. These hubs can surge or dip based on global trading patterns – for example, Dubai’s rise in 2022 and slip in 2023, tied largely to the handling of Russian diamonds amid sanctions.

• Traditional Centers Under Pressure: Belgium (specifically Antwerp) and Israel (often the sixth-ranked exporter) have historically been at the heart of the diamond trade. They remained significant – Belgium was in the top five all five years – but their relative share has declined. In 2016, Belgium was the second-largest diamond exporter; by 2024, it was a distant fifth with under 9% of global exports. This reflects competition from newer hubs (UAE, India) and possibly the impact of compliance requirements that diverted some trade elsewhere. Israel’s exports likewise fell from about $14 billion in 2016 to around $6.6 billion in 2023, dropping it out of the top five. These trends indicate a geographical shift in the diamond trade toward Asia and the Middle East.

• Mining Countries vs. Hub Countries: It’s interesting that countries rich in diamond resources (like Botswana, Russia, Canada, South Africa, Angola) do not top the export value charts. Botswana in 2022 was actually the world’s largest rough producer by value (nearly $5 billion mined), yet its export value in that year (~$7 billion rough) was still only about one-quarter of India’s total exports (which are mostly polished). The value-added by cutting and trading often exceeds the raw value from the mine. That said, mining nations remain crucial: when rough production falls or prices change, it affects the entire chain. For example, the high production values in 2022 (Botswana, Russia, etc.) fed the export boom, whereas production cuts in 2023 (and Russia’s inability to sell freely) fed into the export slump. Going forward, initiatives in African producing countries to do more local polishing (beneficiation) could gradually increase their share of export value.

Overall, the past five years underscore that the “rulers” of the diamond trade by export value are a mix of cutting centers and trading hubs rather than just the locations of diamond mines. India’s role is dominant and looks to continue, though challenges are on the horizon – including competition from lab-grown diamonds (a market expected to reach ~$51 billion by 2030), which could cut into natural diamond demand. Traditional hubs like Antwerp and new hubs like Dubai will likely vie for influence, especially as regulations (such as traceability requirements for conflict-free diamonds) evolve.

As of 2025, industry reports suggest a cautious outlook: demand is recovering slowly and global diamond market revenues are expected to grow modestly in the coming years. But if the last five years taught us anything, it’s that the diamond trade can sparkle one year and stumble the next. The rankings of top exporters may well shuffle again with the next boom or downturn. For now, India and its fellow top five countries continue to reign supreme over the diamond export market, collectively shaping the fortunes of this glittering global industry.