Israel’s Polished Diamond Exports Continue Slow Recovery In May

Israel exported a net of $601 million worth of polished diamonds in May, according to figures released by the Central Bureau of Statistics on Sunday. Exports of polished diamonds increased 64.2 percent compared to May 2009.

Israel’s diamond industry is slowly recovering from the after affects of the 2008-09 global financial crisis, which severely hit the U.S., Israel’s leading polished diamond export destination.

Compared to May 2008, before the financial crash, Israel exported a net of $1.02 billion worth of polished diamonds, indicating that while the center is on a recovery track, its exports still have room for growth.

Gross polished diamond exports in May stood at $1.14 billion.

In the first five months of 2010, Israel’s net exports of polished diamonds totaled $2.55 billion.

Israel imported $647.1 million worth of polished and rough diamonds, according to the CBS, which does not separate diamond imports, or provide data by carats. To date, Israel exported $3 billion worth of diamonds.

Israel’s exports of jewelry totaled $34.3 million in May, declining 17.4 percent from the $41.5 million exported in May 2009.