As US buyers check for source, Surat diamond industry changes sales plan

Polishing units shift focus to domestic business as American clients shun Russian stones and company partly owned by the Kremlin comes under sanctions.

Surat’s diamond polishing and exporting units are turning to domestic sales after struggling to prove to their US buyers that the precious stones are not sourced from Russia, which is under Western economic sanctions,

Alrosa, which is partly owned by the Russian government, accounts for 40 per cent of the world's rough diamond supply in volume and 30 per cent in value, was sanctioned by the US Treasury in April 2022.

To prevent complications with US buyers, the Surat industry plans to use Russian rough diamonds for the domestic market while focusing on rough diamonds sourced from other regions to