MOSCOW, August 11 (RIA Novosti) - Russia produced 18,349,000 carats of raw diamonds in January-June 2009 worth a total of $1.2 billion, a rise of 4.6% year-on-year, the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday.
Russia produced 36,925,000 carats of diamonds in 2008 worth a total of $2.5 billion, a fall of 3.5% year-on-year.
Russia's largest diamond producer, Alrosa mines 97% of all diamonds in the country and accounts for 25% of global diamond output.
The Russian government holds a 50.9% stake in the company.
