Millennials prefer gems over gold & diamond

Many young and rich Indians, are choosing gems like rubies, sapphires, emeralds and aquamarines over gold or diamond. According to the data computed by the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council, a trade body supported by the ministry of commerce and industry, imports of rough gemstones – precious as well as semi-precious – have grown massively from US$ 106 million from 2008-09 to US$ 906 million in 2017-18. According to the data, in the April-August 2019, coloured gemstone imports went up by 150%. While rough diamond exports for the same period fell by 22.9%, these are much larger by value.

These gems are usually imported from a range of countries like Sri Lanka and Myanmar to the US and Australia.