Best Global Consumer Markets for Selling Imported Jewelry

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International purchases of imported jewelry made from precious metals or other materials clad with precious metals were worth US$62.4 billion in 2020.

The value of globally imported precious metals jewelry fell by -11.4% over the latest 5-year period down by -11.4% compared to 2016.

From 2019 to 2020, the dollar amount spent on imported precious metals jewelry plunged by about a third (down -33.9%). One reason for that drop could be the global pandemic that constrained many people to avoid public gatherings including parties, conceivably making demand for jewelry a lesser priority for consumers.

The 5 most lucrative global consumer markets for selling imported precious metals jewelry totaled well over half (58.3%) of total import purchases of real jewelry sourced from international markets in 2020. The strongest cashflows for buying imported jewelry were generated by: Hong Kong (18.2% of overall total), Switzerland (12.7%), United States (12.3%), United Arab Emirates (9.2%) and China (5.9%).

Among these 5 key markets, the severest year-over-year buying decline was a -61.2% downtick posted by importers in the United Arab Emirates. The most modest reduction was the -12.7% drop in demand from buyers in the United States.

Jewelry (spelled jewellery in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia) refers to personal decorative items. These relatively costly goods range from bracelets, brooches and cufflinks to earrings, necklaces, pendants and rings.

Precious metals jewelry is often made from gold or silver combined with popular gemstones such as diamonds, emeralds, sapphires, rubies or pearls.

By comparing changes in consumer demand for imported jewelry by buyer country, researchers can uncover the most compelling opportunities for selling jewelry on international markets.

Jewelry Is A Consumer Speciality Product

Jewelry satisfies the criteria of a consumer good (also called an end product) created for consumers to buy in its final form as a luxury item to improve their personal appearance. In contrast, products like turbojets are usually purchased by companies or government entities rather than individuals.

Economists classify jewelry as a speciality product, a technical classification for goods that are not as easily accessible as shopping products purchased from a local convenience stores or grocery shops.

Jewelry is also defined as a speciality product because it is durable since historically it has served as an important archeological finding. Another speciality attribute is that purchasing jewelry typically requires more time before the consumer makes a buying decision. Plus, as a commodity jewelry is not bought as often as less expensive items such as food or beverages.

Imitation or Costume Jewelry

Unlike “real” precious metals jewelry, imitation or costume jewelry is made from inexpensive simulated gemstones like rhinestones or lucite set in brass. Ironically, imitation jewelry is highly dependent on current fashion trends.

To give some financial perspective on the global markets for precious metals jewelry, imports of imitation jewelry was worth $5.1 billion during 2020 or roughly one-twelfth of international purchases of so-called “real” jewelry. Total imports of imitation jewelry fell in value by -29.3% from 2019 to 2020, a slower pace than the -33.9% decline in value for the more expensive precious metals jewelry.

Searchable Lists: Imported Jewelry by Country

The pre-sorted list below showcases marketing intelligence for the top 100 buyers of precious metals jewelry, ranked in descending order starting with the greatest annual sales amount at the 4-digit Harmonized System (HS) code level. For precious metals jewelry, the HS code prefix is 7113.

Also shown is the percentage change in those import purchases from 2019 to 2020

  1. Hong Kong: US$11,333,343,000 (down -16.9% from 2019)
  2. Switzerland: $7,895,569,000 (down -52.2%)
  3. United States: $7,700,812,000 (down -12.7%)
  4. United Arab Emirates: $5,767,826,000 (down -61.2%)
  5. China: $3,682,881,000 (up 54.1%)
  6. France: $3,216,830,000 (down -38.2%)
  7. United Kingdom: $2,422,337,000 (down -47.7%)
  8. Singapore: $2,141,056,000 (down -29.2%)
  9. Qatar: $1,726,890,000 (up 315.2%)
  10. Japan: $1,560,651,000 (down -22.5%)
  11. Germany: $1,544,391,000 (down -4.3%)
  12. Italy: $1,173,289,000 (down -38.3%)
  13. Australia: $899,037,000 (down -9.7%)
  14. Iraq: $889,781,000 (down -64.5%)
  15. Canada: $836,449,000 (down -14.2%)
  16. Turkey: $754,968,000 (down -53.6%)
  17. Macao: $725,730,000 (down -36.3%)
  18. Saudi Arabia: $602,663,000 (down -43.4%)
  19. Thailand: $584,929,000 (down -41.7%)
  20. South Korea: $582,072,000 (down -0.7%)
  21. Ireland: $508,178,000 (up 190.8%)
  22. Dominican Republic: $460,072,000 (down -2.9%)
  23. Taiwan: $434,079,000 (down -24%)
  24. Malaysia: $388,104,000 (down -26.5%)
  25. India: $345,445,000 (down -43.6%)
  26. Spain: $319,342,000 (down -29.5%)
  27. Netherlands: $318,642,000 (down -0.5%)
  28. Russia: $257,079,000 (down -20.8%)
  29. Mexico: $256,087,000 (down -44.6%)
  30. Israel: $225,352,000 (down -5.9%)
  31. Poland: $222,827,000 (down -0.1%)
  32. Belgium: $203,456,000 (down -6.1%)
  33. Austria: $193,374,000 (down -19.9%)
  34. Czech Republic: $133,992,000 (down -20.5%)
  35. Denmark: $113,622,000 (up 3.6%)
  36. Libya: $113,348,000 (down -61.3%)
  37. Kuwait: $96,587,000 (down -86.1%)
  38. New Zealand: $91,164,000 (down -25.1%)
  39. Vietnam: $91,110,000 (up 81.1%)
  40. Sweden: $87,204,000 (down -2.9%)
  41. Egypt: $80,438,000 (up 740%)
  42. Bangladesh: $73,349,000 (down -71.5%)
  43. Norway: $71,896,000 (down -4.9%)
  44. Lebanon: $70,395,000 (down -17.8%)
  45. Curacao: $64,286,000 (down -73.3%)
  46. Portugal: $59,467,000 (down -39.5%)
  47. Kazakhstan: $58,034,000 (up 3.3%)
  48. Panama: $57,029,000 (down -64.7%)
  49. Jordan: $45,594,000 (down -48.3%)
  50. Morocco: $41,774,000 (down -40.6%)
  51. Oman: $39,370,000 (down -90.9%)
  52. Chile: $39,078,000 (down -9.3%)
  53. Greece: $38,814,000 (down -47.6%)
  54. Hungary: $38,124,000 (up 1.2%)
  55. Belarus: $32,779,000 (down 0%)
  56. Bulgaria: $31,983,000 (up 31%)
  57. Bahrain: $31,941,000 (down -75.8%)
  58. Philippines: $30,433,000 (up 64.6%)
  59. Slovakia: $28,672,000 (down -3.2%)
  60. Luxembourg: $26,773,000 (down -26.5%)
  61. Brazil: $25,628,000 (down -32.2%)
  62. Lithuania: $24,350,000 (up 16.2%)
  63. Colombia: $21,931,000 (down -29.9%)
  64. South Africa: $21,654,000 (down -41.9%)
  65. Ukraine: $20,578,000 (up 16.5%)
  66. Latvia: $20,338,000 (down -49.5%)
  67. Finland: $18,224,000 (up 1.2%)
  68. Estonia: $16,865,000 (up 5.2%)
  69. Bahamas: $15,765,000 (down -70.9%)
  70. Armenia: $15,758,000 (up 40.8%)
  71. Cayman Islands: $15,167,000 (down -47.1%)
  72. Indonesia: $14,899,000 (down -39.2%)
  73. Albania: $14,818,000 (up 40.9%)
  74. Aruba: $12,236,000 (down -70.3%)
  75. Cyprus: $11,924,000 (down -18.8%)
  76. Croatia: $11,761,000 (down -1.2%)
  77. Mauritius: $11,646,000 (up 7.9%)
  78. Guatemala: $11,520,000 (down -5.1%)
  79. Azerbaijan: $10,175,000 (down -34.6%)
  80. Malta: $9,540,000 (down -49.9%)
  81. Moldova: $9,502,000 (down -21.3%)
  82. Slovenia: $8,028,000 (down -6.5%)
  83. Costa Rica: $6,809,000 (down -39.2%)
  84. Serbia: $6,772,000 (up 6.8%)
  85. Sri Lanka: $6,606,000 (down -89.7%)
  86. St Kitts/Nevis: $6,098,000 (down -69.2%)
  87. Peru: $5,603,000 (down -51.5%)
  88. Jamaica: $5,429,000 (down -74.5%)
  89. Sudan: $5,014,000 (down -96.5%)
  90. US Minor Outlying Is: $4,932,000 (down -51.2%)
  91. Ivory Coast: $4,891,000 (up 117.1%)
  92. Maldives: $4,641,000 (up 1161%)
  93. British Virgin Islands: $4,459,000 (down -41.9%)
  94. Bosnia/Herzegovina: $4,449,000 (down -46.7%)
  95. Kyrgyzstan: $4,183,000 (down -34.5%)
  96. Mongolia: $4,058,000 (up 388.9%)
  97. Seychelles: $3,883,000 (up 2312%)
  98. Andorra: $3,686,000 (down -46.5%)
  99. Afghanistan: $3,576,000 (up 701.8%)
  100. Algeria: $3,053,000 (down -66.9%)

Among the above 100 major markets, 23 countries increased their spending on imported precious metals jewelry. The 8 strongest percentage gains year over year were posted by Seychelles (up 2,312%), Maldives (up 1,161%), Egypt (up 739.6%), Afghanistan (up 701.8%), Mongolia (up 388.9%), Qatar (up 315.2%), Ireland (up 190.8%) and Ivory Coast (up 117.1%).

For comparison purposes, consider the import purchase data for imitation or costume jewelry in the table below. The 4-digit HS code prefix for imitation or costume jewelry is 7117.

  1. United States: US$797,599,000 (down -33.3% from 2019)
  2. France: $449,922,000 (down -9.4%)
  3. Germany: $393,080,000 (down -18.5%)
  4. China: $339,846,000 (down -23.7%)
  5. United Kingdom: $257,742,000 (down -27.5%)
  6. Japan: $218,164,000 (down -19.7%)
  7. Hong Kong: $217,413,000 (down -44.3%)
  8. Austria: $181,335,000 (down -52.8%)
  9. Italy: $156,110,000 (down -37.3%)
  10. Spain: $141,416,000 (down -36.6%)
  11. Singapore: $119,357,000 (down -48%)
  12. South Korea: $112,588,000 (down -1.3%)
  13. Netherlands: $111,244,000 (down -12.7%)
  14. Switzerland: $107,633,000 (down -17.1%)
  15. Canada: $104,248,000 (down -32%)
  16. Taiwan: $94,565,000 (up 14.8%)
  17. Australia: $82,463,000 (down -26.1%)
  18. Poland: $79,295,000 (up 8.3%)
  19. United Arab Emirates: $75,981,000 (down -51.6%)
  20. Belgium: $73,852,000 (down -32.9%)
  21. Saudi Arabia: $65,657,000 (down -40.4%)
  22. Thailand: $51,788,000 (down -37.9%)
  23. Russia: $47,280,000 (down -13.6%)
  24. Mexico: $43,294,000 (down -52.7%)
  25. Sweden: $41,157,000 (down -10.4%)
  26. Portugal: $41,131,000 (down -44.9%)
  27. Macao: $28,518,000 (down -3.8%)
  28. Denmark: $28,144,000 (down -5.9%)
  29. Czech Republic: $27,543,000 (down -24.7%)
  30. Malaysia: $26,775,000 (down -16.1%)
  31. Norway: $25,801,000 (down -7.3%)
  32. Indonesia: $23,471,000 (down -31.1%)
  33. Ireland: $23,322,000 (down -26.6%)
  34. Greece: $23,285,000 (down -30.7%)
  35. Vietnam: $23,251,000 (up 74.1%)
  36. Turkey: $22,548,000 (down -53%)
  37. South Africa: $20,239,000 (down -40.6%)
  38. India: $19,948,000 (down -50.8%)
  39. Iraq: $19,267,000 (down -10.9%)
  40. Israel: $19,217,000 (down -33.5%)
  41. Hungary: $16,836,000 (down -43.6%)
  42. New Zealand: $13,820,000 (down -23.6%)
  43. Brazil: $13,426,000 (down -57.2%)
  44. Iran: $12,182,000 (down -24.1%)
  45. Peru: $12,134,000 (down -23.6%)
  46. Bangladesh: $11,974,000 (up 22.9%)
  47. Kuwait: $11,519,000 (down -57.1%)
  48. Dominican Republic: $11,265,000 (up 70.1%)
  49. Luxembourg: $11,263,000 (down -27.7%)
  50. Slovakia: $10,483,000 (up 15.8%)
  51. Colombia: $10,355,000 (down -39.4%)
  52. Chile: $10,216,000 (down -52.9%)
  53. El Salvador: $9,776,000 (up 18.8%)
  54. Qatar: $8,813,000 (down -43.8%)
  55. Finland: $8,300,000 (down -15.6%)
  56. Egypt: $7,954,000 (down -66.1%)
  57. Guatemala: $7,908,000 (down -38%)
  58. Ghana: $7,862,000 (up 735.5%)
  59. Argentina: $7,641,000 (down -45.5%)
  60. Croatia: $7,589,000 (down -16.5%)
  61. Bulgaria: $7,550,000 (up 1.7%)
  62. Ecuador: $7,526,000 (down -51.1%)
  63. Slovenia: $7,338,000 (down -13.3%)
  64. Afghanistan: $6,962,000 (up 68.7%)
  65. Algeria: $6,411,000 (down -29.4%)
  66. Morocco: $6,149,000 (down -40.3%)
  67. Lithuania: $5,861,000 (down -4.5%)
  68. Ukraine: $5,544,000 (down -24.3%)
  69. Panama: $5,205,000 (down -54.3%)
  70. Sudan: $4,842,000 (up 39.8%)
  71. Costa Rica: $4,532,000 (down -35.1%)
  72. Yemen: $4,217,000 (down -27%)
  73. Kazakhstan: $4,035,000 (down -42.9%)
  74. Pakistan: $3,621,000 (down -41%)
  75. Serbia: $3,539,000 (down -14.7%)
  76. Bolivia: $3,537,000 (down -58.1%)
  77. Cyprus: $3,037,000 (down -44.8%)
  78. Malta: $2,951,000 (down -38%)
  79. Nigeria: $2,933,000 (down -11.2%)
  80. Mali: $2,810,000 (up 540%)
  81. Philippines: $2,690,000 (down -49.4%)
  82. Kenya: $2,667,000 (up 104%)
  83. Bosnia/Herzegovina: $2,526,000 (down -33.6%)
  84. Tanzania: $2,488,000 (up 6.3%)
  85. Uruguay: $2,445,000 (down -24.9%)
  86. Jordan: $2,420,000 (down -1.9%)
  87. Sri Lanka: $2,387,000 (down -32.9%)
  88. Tunisia: $2,379,000 (up 4.4%)
  89. Belarus: $2,374,000 (down 0%)
  90. Ivory Coast: $2,353,000 (up 60.6%)
  91. Estonia: $2,314,000 (down -34.5%)
  92. Latvia: $2,224,000 (down -30.5%)
  93. Chad: $2,179,000 (up 713.1%)
  94. Djibouti: $2,168,000 (down -10%)
  95. Iceland: $2,102,000 (down -16.8%)
  96. Nepal: $1,904,000 (down -43.1%)
  97. Bahrain: $1,800,000 (down -76.3%)
  98. Libya: $1,758,000 (down -30.8%)
  99. Togo: $1,738,000 (up 13269%)
  100. Georgia: $1,572,000 (down -49.6%)

Among the above 100 key markets for imitation or costume jewelry, 18 jurisdictions increased their spending on imported so-called fake or costume jewelry. The 8 strongest percentage gains year over year were generated by Togo (up 13,269%), Ghana (up 735.5%), Chad (up 713.1%), Mali (up 540.1%), Kenya (up 103.7%), Vietnam (up 74.1%), Dominican Republic (up 70.1%) and Afghanistan (up 68.7%).

Top 10 Expensive Unit Costs for Jewelry Imports

The importers of precious metals jewelry paid a wide range of unit costs when calculated as US dollars per ton. Among the lowest average unit costs were paid by the Federated States of Micronesia ($1,000 per ton), Ethiopia ($2,400) and Nigeria ($2,700).

Below, you will find the 10 highest average unit prices paid for imported precious metals jewelry in 2020 by country. They are presented in descending order starting with the nations that pay the loftiest unit values for imported jewelry comprised of precious metals and gems.

  1. Ghana: US$883 million per ton of imported precious metals jewelry
  2. Switzerland: $57.2 million
  3. China: $38.4 million
  4. Lebanon: $35.2 million
  5. Iraq: $31.8 million
  6. Hong Kong: $30.8 million
  7. Latvia: $20.3 million
  8. Libya: $18.9 million
  9. Taiwan: $18.9 million
  10. Saudi Arabia: $14.7 million

The fastest growth in unit costs for precious metals jewelry among the above leaders were paid by importers in Saudi Arabia (up 105.7% from 2019 to 2020), Lebanon (up 105.4%), Libya (up 74.2%) and China (up 60.6%).

Unsurprisingly, importers of imitation or costume jewelry generally involves much lower unit costs as calculated in US dollars per ton. The least expensive average unit costs for imitation or costume jewelry belong to a handful of African import nations. The importers, which unit costs shown within parentheses, are: Nigeria ($636 per ton), Senegal ($701), Gambia ($1,000), Mozambique ($1,326) and Uganda ($1,399).

The following list showcases the 10 highest average unit prices paid for imported imitation or costume jewelry in 2020 by country. They are presented in descending order starting with the nations that pay the costliest unit values.

  1. China: US$400,123 per ton of imported imitation or costume jewelry
  2. Switzerland: $333,229
  3. Andorra: $246,500
  4. Gibraltar: $187,667
  5. Anguilla: $176,000
  6. Mali: $175,625
  7. Saint Lucia: $162,000
  8. Kuwait: $149,506
  9. Pakistan: $148,908
  10. Austria: $147,908

The fastest growth in unit costs among the top 10 countries above for imitation jewelry were paid by importers in Andorra (up 4,757% from 2019 to 2020), Mali (up 41.3%), Kuwait (up 26.7%) and Switzerland (up 15.3%).

Richest Global Markets for Imported “Real” Jewelry

The data below summarizes market demand for precious metals jewelry imported during 2020 by 30 of world’s richest countries in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person, according to RichestCountryReports.com.

Countries are listed in descending order starting with the wealthiest economy in terms of GDP per capita.

  1. Luxembourg: $26.8 million (Down -26.5%)
  2. Singapore: $2.1 billion (Down -29.2%)
  3. Ireland: $508.2 million (Up 190.8%)
  4. Qatar: $1.7 billion (Up 315.2%)
  5. Macao: $725.7 million (Down -36.3%)
  6. Switzerland: $7.9 billion (Down -52.2%)
  7. Norway: $71.9 million (Down -4.9%)
  8. United States: $7.7 billion (Down -12.7%)
  9. Brunei Darussalam: $1.4 million (Up 220.6%)
  10. Hong Kong: $11.3 billion (Down -16.9%)
  11. Denmark: $113.6 million (Up 3.6%)
  12. Netherlands: $318.6 million (Down -0.5%)
  13. United Arab Emirates: $5.8 billion (Down -61.2%)
  14. Taiwan: $434.1 million (Down -24%)
  15. Iceland: $2.5 million (Down -11%)
  16. Austria: $193.4 million (Down -19.9%)
  17. Germany: $1.5 billion (Down -4.3%)
  18. Sweden: $87.2 million (Down -2.9%)
  19. Australia: $899 million (Down -9.7%)
  20. Belgium: $203.5 million (Down -6.1%)
  21. Finland: $18.2 million (Up 1.2%)
  22. Canada: $836.4 million (Down -14.2%)
  23. Bahrain: $31.9 million (Down -75.8%)
  24. France: $3.2 billion (Down -38.2%)
  25. Saudi Arabia: $602.7 million (Down -43.4%)
  26. United Kingdom: $2.4 billion (Down -47.7%)
  27. South Korea: $582.1 million (Down -0.7%)
  28. Malta: $9.5 million (Down -49.9%)
  29. Japan: $1.6 billion (Down -22.5%)
  30. New Zealand: $91.2 million (Down -25.1%)

Five among the above richest economies spent more on imported precious metals jewelry in 2020 compared to 2019. Those top gainers were Qatar (up 315.2%), Brunei Darussalam (up 220.6%), Ireland (up 190.8%), Denmark (up 3.6%) and Finland (up 1.2%). Registering the most dramatic double-digit annual declines were: Bahrain (down -75.8%), United Arab Emirates (down -61.2%), Switzerland (down -52.2%), Malta (down -49.9%), United Kingdom (down -47.7%) and Saudi Arabia (down -43.4%).

Richest Global Markets for Imported Imitation Jewelry

Listed below are the key countries that bought imported imitation or costume jewelry in 2020. The scope of this analysis is focused on 30 of world’s richest countries in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person, according to RichestCountryReports.com.

Countries are listed in descending order prioritizing the richest economies in terms of GDP per capita.

  1. Luxembourg: $11.3 million (Down -27.7%)
  2. Singapore: $119.4 million (Down -48%)
  3. Ireland: $23.3 million (Down -26.6%)
  4. Qatar: $8.8 million (Down -43.8%)
  5. Macao: $28.5 million (Down -3.8%)
  6. Switzerland: $107.6 million (Down -17.1%)
  7. Norway: $25.8 million (Down -7.3%)
  8. United States: $797.6 million (Down -33.3%)
  9. Brunei Darussalam: $1.2 million (Up 43%)
  10. Hong Kong: $217.4 million (Down -44.3%)
  11. Denmark: $28.1 million (Down -5.9%)
  12. Netherlands: $111.2 million (Down -12.7%)
  13. United Arab Emirates: $76 million (Down -51.6%)
  14. Taiwan: $94.6 million (Up 14.8%)
  15. Iceland: $2.1 million (Down -16.8%)
  16. Austria: $181.3 million (Down -52.8%)
  17. Germany: $393.1 million (Down -18.5%)
  18. Sweden: $41.2 million (Down -10.4%)
  19. Australia: $82.5 million (Down -26.1%)
  20. Belgium: $73.9 million (Down -32.9%)
  21. Finland: $8.3 million (Down -15.6%)
  22. Canada: $104.2 million (Down -32%)
  23. Bahrain: $1.8 million (Down -76.3%)
  24. France: $449.9 million (Down -9.4%)
  25. Saudi Arabia: $65.7 million (Down -40.4%)
  26. United Kingdom: $257.7 million (Down -27.5%)
  27. South Korea: $112.6 million (Down -1.3%)
  28. Malta: $3 million (Down -38%)
  29. Japan: $218.2 million (Down -19.7%)
  30. New Zealand: $13.8 million (Down -23.6%)

Just two among the above richest economies spent more on imported precious metals jewelry from 2019 to 2020 namely Brunei Darussalam via a 43% gain and Taiwan thanks to its 14.8% acceleration in purchases.

Registering the severest annual declines were: Bahrain (down -76.3%), Austria (down -52.8%), United Arab Emirates (down -51.6%), Singapore (down -48%), Hong Kong (down -44.3%) and Qatar (down -43.8%).

See also

More great research: Best Global Consumer Markets for Selling Imported Gold, Best Global Consumer Markets for Selling Imported Perfumes, Best Global Consumer Markets for Selling Imported Wine, Top Countries for Imports of Beauty & Skincare Cosmetics, Best Global Consumer Markets for Selling Imported Flowers, Most Valuable Global Markets for Selling Silver Imports

References

Independent insights and analysis presented in this article are based on researched facts and statistics sourced from the following educational portals.

BoyceWire, Consumer Goods Definition.

Forbes, The Forbes Global 2000 List.

International Trade Centre, Trade Map.

Investopedia, Consumer Goods, Consumer Staples Definition, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).

Richest Country Reports, Top 50 Richest Countries by GDP per Capita.

United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade State Data.

USITC DataWeb, US Merchandise Trade: Imports for Consumption.

Wikipedia, Costume jewelery.

Wikipedia, Jewellery.

World’s Top Exports, Jewelry Exports by Country.

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