Trade deficit persists in Jan

The trade deficit for January, which represents the difference between the country’s exports and imports, is the latest in a series of negative figures for the economy which stretch back to September last year when diamonds began underperforming.

Diamond producers such as De Beers hope to rebound this year after a difficult 2023 caused by global economic weaknesses, a softer-than-forecast rebound in China, and industry reputational concerns amongst consumers due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The strong demand of 2021 and 2022 met these factors and resulted in a glut or oversupply in the market at the retail level in 2023.