MUMBAI: Export of diamonds from India to the US has nearly halved after President Trump slapped a 50% tariff on the country, plunging the industry into a crisis, said Al Cook, CEO at De Beers Group, adding that there hasn’t been a large scale “relocation” of Indian industry to other countries, though, as stakeholders are hopeful of a trade deal between India and the US.“We just need to see the right time, right place and right politics for that (deal) to happen. The good news is that the US has announced that once there’s a deal, there will be a 0% tariff on natural diamonds. People do expect tariffs to end,” Cook said here.London-based De Beers Group which owns the Forevermark diamond brand supplies rough diamonds to several Indian partners who then cut and polish them here and export to the US. “The US put 50% tariffs on India and that’s challenging for the diamond industry because if you have got 90% of the world’s diamonds cut and polished in India and 50% of the world’s diamonds bought in America, that’s a huge market,” said Cook who met commerce minister Piyush Goyal.In 2024, total diamond exports from India stood at about $13 billion of which about 50% was shipped to the US, Cook said.A growing economy, expanding middle class which is willing to spen d more helped by higher disposable incomes, a new crop of high earning consumers and India’s love for jewellery will allow the country to retain its place as the second largest market for natural diamond consumption after the US, said Cook as the company launched its largest global flagship Forevermark store in Mumbai this week.Demand for natural diamonds grew 11% in India last year which overtook China where a declining rate of marriages—down by about 50% over the last decade has crippled sales of (diamond) engagement rings, said Cook. “In the short-term, we see stronger growth in India. It is just one of the most important countries on the earth right now and certainly, one of the most important countries in the diamond industry,” said Cook under whose watch, the company is localising offerings for Indian shoppers. More women are now buying diamond jewellery for themselves and taking to everyday pieces, a trend Forevermark is betting on with a target to close 2026 with 25 stores.