The diamond industry continued to improve with an estimated 75% of cut diamonds destined for North America, Japan and Europe.
The growth in these regions has driven up demand, together with a higher demand in China and India. Leading producers by value are Botswana (27%), Russia (19%), Canada (18%) and South Africa (12%). South African diamond production decreased by 20% from 8,9 million carats in 2010 to seven million carats in 2011.
The value of rough diamonds produced rose significantly by 26% to approximately R14,4 billion.
