The IIJS Signature trade show, held in Mumbai from January 4 to 8, 2025, kicked off the jewelry trade year with a positive outlook. Suppliers of 22-karat gold jewelry were especially upbeat, with predictions of a successful wedding season in India—stronger or at least as strong as 2024. Despite challenges in the diamond sector, including price declines for both natural and lab-grown diamonds, diamond jewelers were still optimistic due to the resilient domestic market.
Vipul Shah, outgoing chairman of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), shared that 2025’s wedding season is expected to perform as well as the previous year, driven by continued demand for gold jewelry, which forms the backbone of the wedding jewelry market. Jewelers have seen consumers view gold as a safe investment amid rising prices and geopolitical uncertainty.
Notably, colored gemstones and lab-grown diamonds have become more popular in Indian wedding fashion, and with the kamurta (an inauspicious wedding period) ending in mid-January, demand is predicted to surge into the next wedding season. India’s jewelry market, valued at $85 billion annually, remains a dominant force globally, with wedding jewelry contributing a significant portion of sales.
While some regions like China face sluggish demand, U.S. markets, particularly for Valentine’s Day, are expected to see strong performance, bolstering optimism for the global jewelry market as 2025 kicks into full swing.