DMCC, the leading international business district in charge of driving the flow of global trade through Dubai, has announced that the emirati city’s total diamond trade reached an all-time high of USD 41.7 billion in 2025.
The figure, revealed by the Dubai Customs, surpassed the previous record of USD 40.9 billion, set in 2011. The 2025 total was also accompanied by a record 359.5 million carats traded, up 42.5% year-on-year, marking the first such occasion, in which Dubai posted a record in both diamond trade value and physical volume in the same year.
“Total diamond trade value across all categories rose 16.2% year-on-year, from USD 35.8 billion in 2024, adding USD 5.8 billion in a single year. Records were broken in other categories, with trade in coloured gemstones reaching USD 1.1 billion in 2025, up 48% year-on-year,” Dubai Customs data noted.
Dubai’s diamond sector has seen a steady growth momentum in the last few years. Since 2020, total trade through the Emirati city has increased 139% in value and 100% in volume, reflecting its growing role as the preferred gateway connecting producing countries, manufacturing centres and consumer markets across the global diamond industry.
Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DMCC, said, “Dubai’s latest diamond trade figures demonstrate the success of a long-term strategy to build the world’s most connected, transparent, and efficient precious stones ecosystem. Since the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, we have seen trade through Dubai double in physical volume and grow by almost 140% in value. For natural polished diamonds alone, value has grown by 246%. We are the partner of choice for producers, manufacturers, traders, and retailers across the global industry. Through world-class infrastructure, regulatory certainty, access to finance, and one of the world’s most sophisticated ecosystems for precious stones, we will continue to provide the platform the industry needs to grow.”
“The record was driven primarily by continued strength in natural diamonds, which generated USD 39.9 billion in trade during 2025 and accounted for 95.8% of total diamond trade value. Rough diamonds delivered particularly strong momentum,” the official added further.
In 2025, Dubai traded 205.2 million carats of natural rough diamonds, representing the second-highest volume on record and an increase of approximately 34% compared to 2024.
In the natural polished category, trade value reached USD 18.7 billion during the year, a rise of nearly 25% year-on-year. Since 2020, total natural polished trade through Dubai has increased by 246% in value, with the average value per carat increasing approximately eight- to ninefold.
Natural diamonds have become one of the economic foundations of Dubai’s commodity marketplace, despite the recent expansion of gemstone trade and other diamond categories.
The latest figures further reinforce a longer-term shift in the global diamond trade, with Dubai’s diamond trade increasing 63% by value and 44% by volume over the past decade.
Dubai’s wider diamond and precious stones ecosystem is witnessing rapid growth as well, with coloured gemstone trade achieving an all-time high, as imports rose 68.8% and re-exports increased 33.5%, demonstrating growth across both sourcing and distribution verticals.
On the other hand, synthetic and industrial diamonds together now account for approximately 39% of total diamond carat volume.
To build upon the momentum further, Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the London Diamond Bourse (LDB), with the goal of bolstering the international diamond and gemstone trade.
As per the DMCC, the agreement advances closer collaboration by focusing on promoting responsible trade, facilitating commercial opportunities, encouraging knowledge exchange and increasing cooperation among members.
The partnership will also strengthen dialogue on issues affecting the international diamond industry, enabling both bourses to respond better to changes in the global marketplace.