Exporters of gems and jewellery have said the free-trade agreement (FTA) has brought relief to their sector because this opens up the world's second-largest market and brings them on a par with China and Thailand, which face zero tariffs on shipments to Europe.
'That combination of a rising economy, a growing middle class, and a deepening love of diamonds and jewellery is what we see really doubling the market for diamonds over the next five years.'
Some jewellers kept their shops shut in Mumbai as well.
Most of the jewellers who had reopened their showrooms in confusion on Monday, kept shutters down today at Mumbai's Zaveri Bazar and several other places, demanding rollback of the proposal.
The possibility of the slowdown affecting more players is greater if the industry doesn't get access to easier finance in the next six to eight months.
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