India’s polished lab-grown diamond exports have overtaken natural diamonds in volume for the first time, in FY 2025-26, marking a decisive shift in the global diamond trade driven by rapid manufacturing growth and rising affordability.

Provisional data for FY 2025-26 shows India exported 18.8 million carats of polished lab-grown diamonds (LGD), compared to 16 million carats of cut and polished natural diamonds. Industry players say the gap is expected to widen further as LGD manufacturing capacity grows.

A decade ago, the picture was starkly different. In 2015-16, India exported 33.51 million carats of cut and polished natural diamonds, while polished LGD exports were just 100,000 carats. In 10 years, the lab-grown segment has grown from a negligible base to surpass an industry built over more than five decades.

In value terms, natural diamonds remain far ahead. The average export price of natural diamonds is about $760 per carat, compared to $60 dollars per carat for polished LGDs. Despite the price gap, industry leaders say building scale in the lab-grown segment was strategically necessary, especially to compete with China.

They point out that LGDs are becoming increasingly important in jewellery manufacturing and are gaining consumer acceptance at a much faster pace than natural diamond jewellery in several markets.

Market experts attribute the growth largely to affordability. Lower prices have opened demand in countries and consumer segments where natural diamonds had little or no presence. LGDs are thus expanding the jewellery market rather than merely replacing natural diamonds.

Industry observers also note that while geopolitical tensions have disrupted parts of the natural diamond trade, the impact on LGDs has been relatively limited.

“Due to good quality of LGDs and affordable prices, they are becoming popular in new markets. There is demand from countries where there was no market for natural diamonds,” said Vallabh Lakhani, chairman of Kira Diam. “Manufacturing will grow further.”

Despite rising production and declining per-carat prices, the LGD sector continues to draw fresh investment. Experts say future growth may extend beyond jewellery, with potential applications in semiconductors and other technologies, where demand could emerge in far larger volumes.

“Natural diamonds have limited buyers due to their prices, and a segment of buyers will continue to buy natural high-value diamonds. But LGDs have emerged as an option for others and markets in several other countries are opening. This has created a market for our jewellery as well,” said Dinesh Navadiya, chairman of the Indian Diamond Institute.

Courtesy : TOI