Russia exported about 32.3 million carats of uncut rough diamonds worth $3.81 billion in 2011, registering a 37% increase in value year-on-year, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.
The three major importers of Russian diamonds last year were Belgium with 18.85 million carats ($2.516 bln), India with 5.958 million carats ($590.57 mln), and Israel with 3.468 million carats ($383.78 mln).
Diamond production in Russia came to 35.14 million carats in 2011, the ministry said.
Russia accounts for approximately 21% of global diamond production, most of which is concentrated in some of the most inaccessible and inhospitable regions in the world, just below the Arctic Circle.
