Mumbai has dispatched its first diamond exports since India’s lockdown started, after the regional government allowed limited activities to resume at the city’s Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB).
The first shipments took place on Tuesday Mai 12, with 80% to 85% of the goods destined for Hong Kong, BDB president Anoop Mehta told Rapaport News Thursday 14. The rest went to Dubai, Antwerp, the US and Thailand, he noted.
The BDB is the heart of Mumbai’s diamond trade, as all exports must go through the Precious Cargo Customs Clearance Centre (PCCCC) located within the bourse complex. On Monday 11, the Maharashtra state government allowed members of the exchange to enter the site to manage shipments, enabling them to trim a backlog of orders resulting from coronavirus-related restrictions.
Companies must limit their workforces to 10% of capacity and enforce social distancing, and may only remain in the bourse for the time it takes to fulfill their existing export commitments.
“We are glad to inform [that] export has been successfully commenced from…PCCCC by following all the safety norms,” Sabyasachi Ray, executive director of India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), said in a note to members on Tuesday 12.
Surat, India’s polishing hub, began exporting on April 29 after the government allowed manufacturing and shipments to recommence. Those initial parcels were Hong Kong-bound, but India’s next batches of exports are likely to reach a broader range of destinations as trade routes reopen, Mehta explained.
Belgium’s imports and exports have resumed, while Dubai, Thailand and parts of the US market are also able to accept goods, he noted.
“It’s not a question of demand — it’s a question of which centers are open,” Mehta said.
