Marsad Al Dahab has revealed that Egypt's natural diamond imports declined by 56.8% between 2021 and 2024, despite recording the market's first noticeable recovery last year following two consecutive years of decline. The downturn comes as the global diamond industry undergoes a major restructuring after one of its sharpest contractions in recent years.
According to data from the World Integrated Trade Solution (WITS) database of the World Bank, Egypt's imports of non-mounted natural diamonds fell from approximately US$698,160 in 2021 to US$301,870 in 2024, representing a decline of US$396,290, or 56.8%.
The report noted that Egypt imported US$698,160 worth of natural diamonds in 2021, before imports dropped to US$208,960 in 2022 and reached a four-year low of US$122,980 in 2023. Imports rebounded to US$301,870 in 2024, marking a 145.5% year-on-year increase.
According to WITS data, India remained Egypt's largest supplier of natural diamonds in 2024, with exports valued at US$207,420, followed by Turkey at US$87,540, and Thailand at US$6,920.
The report emphasized that these figures relate only to non-mounted natural diamonds and therefore do not reflect the full size of Egypt's diamond market. A significant share of domestic demand is embedded within finished diamond jewelry, including engagement rings, wedding sets, and diamond-studded gold jewelry, rather than imported as loose stones.
In addition, TrendEconomy data indicate that Egypt's total imports under the broader diamond category reached approximately US$928,000 in 2023, highlighting the difference between imports of loose diamonds and the broader diamond jewelry market, which cannot be measured through a single customs classification.
Global Diamond Market Faces Major Correction
The report noted that Egypt's decline in diamond imports coincided with a significant slowdown in the global diamond market.
According to international trade data, the value of global diamond trade declined to approximately US$73.5 billion in 2024, down from nearly US$100 billion in 2023, representing a loss of more than US$26.5 billion, or a 26.5% decline in just one year.
This marked one of the industry's sharpest contractions in recent history, driven by weaker demand in China, elevated global interest rates, and slower consumer spending on luxury goods across major markets.
Despite the correction, the global natural diamond jewelry market continues to represent one of the world's largest luxury segments, with an estimated value of around US$82 billion, according to the Natural Diamond Council (NDC) in cooperation with Boston Consulting Group (BCG).
The report also highlighted that NDC data show signs of stabilization during 2025, with sales at specialty jewelry retailers increasing by approximately 2.1%, while average jewelry prices rose by nearly 10%, suggesting that global demand is gradually recovering after the sharp market correction experienced in 2023 and 2024.
What Do We Know About 2025 and 2026?
Marsad Al Dahab noted that no official and complete trade data for Egypt's diamond imports have yet been released for 2025 or 2026 by major international databases, including WITS and UN Comtrade.
However, several international market research institutions have published forward-looking estimates for the Egyptian market.
According to ReportLinker, Egypt's diamond imports are projected to reach approximately US$960,000 by 2026, although the firm expects average annual imports to decline by 1.3%. The same study also estimates that Egyptian diamond demand has grown at an average annual rate of nearly 4% since 2013.
The report believes these projections indicate that underlying demand for diamond jewelry in Egypt remains relatively resilient, even if official trade data for loose diamonds do not fully capture the size of the domestic market.
International forecasts also suggest that the global natural diamond market will gradually return to growth over the coming years, with long-term annual demand expected to expand by 2% to 4%, supported by rising consumption in India, the Gulf region, and Southeast Asia, following the industry's recent correction.
Marsad Al Dahab believes that official trade figures confirm Egypt remains a relatively small market for natural diamond imports compared with major regional trading hubs. However, those figures underestimate the true size of the domestic diamond jewelry market, where demand is largely concentrated in finished jewelry rather than loose stones.
The Observatory also believes that the rebound in natural diamond imports during 2024 could mark the beginning of a gradual market stabilization after two years of sharp declines, particularly as global demand shows signs of recovery and international institutions forecast renewed growth over the medium term.
Looking ahead, Marsad Al Dahab expects the future of Egypt's diamond market to depend primarily on the continued development of the diamond jewelry sector, improving consumer purchasing power, and stronger demand for bridal and luxury jewelry, rather than on trade in loose diamonds alone.
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