The United States accounts for nearly $10 billion or 30.4% of India’s annual gems and jewellery exports of $32 billion. The tariff regime threatens to destabilize not just strategic trade relations but also critical livelihoods and supply chains across the industry
Mumbai: United States President Donald Trump’s decision to levy 25% reciprocal tariff on exports from India from August 1, 2025will have severe impact on India’s gems and jewellery industry, experts have said.
Kirit Bhansali, Chairman, Gem & Jewellery Exports Promotion Council (GJEPC) has been quoted as saying that the development will have far-reaching repercussions, disrupting critical supply chains, stalling exports and threatening thousands of livelihoods. “The Indian gem and jewellery sector stands to be severely impacted. The US is our single largest market, accounting for over $10 billion in exports—nearly 30% of our industry’s total global trade,” Bhansali said. “A blanket tariff of this magnitude will inflate costs, delay shipments, distort pricing, and place immense pressure on every part of the value chain — from small kaarigars to large manufacturers.”
He called on the US administration to reconsider its decision, and for both governments to engage in constructive dialogue to safeguard bilateral trade and protect millions of jobs that depend on it on both sides.
Colin Shah, MD, Kama Jewelrydescribed the tariff as a “big blow for India”. “With the US being one of the key export destinations, this will severely impact sectors like gems and jewellery that are heavily dependent on exports and are one of the biggest contributors to the economy of the country,” Shah said.
The United States accounts for nearly $10 billion or 30.4% of India’s annual gems and jewellery exports of $32 billion.Gems and jewellery are India’s third-largest export to the United States, after engineering and electronic goods.
Unless a bilateral trade agreement adjusts duties or introduces exemptions—especially for natural diamonds as urged by GJEPC and the World Diamond Council—the gems & jewellery industry may lose global competitiveness and face major job losses, given its size, export reliance and labour-intensive nature.
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