China's Covid Surge Hits Indian Manufacturers
January 11, 22
(IDEX Online) - Manufacturers in India fear they'll be badly hit by the Covid surge in China, its second biggest market.
China and the Far East account for 30 per cent of India's diamond exports, but their move to online diamond purchases has been sluggish, compared to the US.
"Rising Covid cases in China and the Far East are a matter of worry," Vipul Shah (pictured), vice chairman at the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council, told The Economic Times.
"It can have some impact on exports of cut and polished diamonds in the fourth quarter. However, the demand from the US is very strong which is expected to make up for the drop in exports to China."
He also said mines in southern Africa were only able to meet half the demand, because of the Omicron variant of Covid.