India's Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and Russian diamond conglomerate Alrosa have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to share diamond trade and statistical data between their two respective countries.

Specifically, Alrosa and the GJEPC agreed to exchange information pertaining to the development of the cooperation between Indian and Russian diamond sectors, including overviews of the diamond market situation, the Indian and Russian trade figures, and information on Indian diamond market research.

The MoU, signed week by GJEPC Chairman Vipul Shah and Alrosa President Fyodor Andreev, follows a recent visit to India by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, during which Indian Commerce Minister Anand Sharma proposed that the state-owned Indian agency, the Minerals & Metals Trading Corporation (MMTC), have with a long-term supply contract with Alrosa.

Speaking at the MoU signing event, Vipul Shah, Chairman GJEPC, said:, "India has long sought long-term contracts between Alrosa and the Indian cutting and polishing industry. With this association, both trade bodies look forward to cooperation and exchange information in the framework of implementation of Kimberley Process Certification Scheme and jointly seek to maintain separate sales of natural and synthetic diamonds and diamond jewellery. This is just the beginning and we look forward to strengthened trade relations between India and Russia."

According to the research compiled by Alrosa, while most of Russia's rough diamond output is cut and polished in India, direct imports of rough diamonds from Russia to India are modest, with the fiscal 2013 figure standing at some $767 million. An Indian think tank recently stated that more direct supplies of rough diamonds to India could easily boost the current figure to between $4-5 billion, says the GJEPC.

Securing direct imports of rough diamonds from Russia and streamlining overall trade procedures would benefit both Alrosa as well as the Indian cutting industry, with increased Indian exports of polished diamonds to Russia, asserts the GJEPC.

According to Alrosa President Fyodor Andreev, "the amount of Alrosa rough diamonds sales to Indian companies has been steadily growing for the last 5 years and resulted into $700 mln of sales in 2013. Customers from India successfully work with Alrosa on the basis of competitive bidding and long-term contracts. The partnership between Alrosa and GJEPC will improve our cooperation with Indian diamond market."

"Procedural matters are all that stand between the two countries and sharply increased trade in polished diamonds between the two countries. The engagement between the Commerce Ministries of both nations in sorting out these procedural matters has diamond industry watchers hopeful of a major increase in trade in coming years," says the GJEPC.