Jewelry industry of Russia

Main article: Russian economy

In Russia, the jewelry industry counts 3,500 enterprises and provides 100,000 jobs, according to the Association of the Guild of Jewelers of Russia for 2021.

Gold mining

Main article: Gold mining

Diamond mining

Main article: Diamonds (Russian market)

Chronicle

2023: Gold jewelry production in Russia increased by 18% over the year, to 55.5 tons

The production of gold jewelry in Russia in 2023 showed an increase of 18%. This became known on October 29, 2024. According to the Federal Test Chamber, during the specified period, 30.8 million gold products were branded in the country, the total mass of which amounted to 55.5 tons. For comparison, in 2022, 26 million gold jewelry weighing 48.5 tons was stigmatized.

According to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, the positive dynamics in the field of jewelry production is explained, among other things, by the recovery in demand for precious metals and an increase in the share of the legal market. Experts note that the introduction of mandatory registration in the State Information System of Precious Metals and Precious Stones (GIIS DMDK) made it possible to track the turnover and number of products that are not previously subject to branding. This factor made a significant contribution to the increase in production and brought to the market products that previously bypassed the certification procedure.

𝓲

Фото: Freepik

A positive trend is also observed in the silver jewelry market. For 2023, the total volume of branded silver products, including imported and domestic ones, amounted to 56.7 million pieces, which is 28.9 million more than a year earlier. Products of domestic production demonstrate special growth - their total number reached 43.7 million units. The increase in the turnover of silver jewelry more than doubled compared to the level of 2018-2019 was also the result of the legalization and mandatory registration of products in GIIS DMDK, where all jewelry is now taken into account, regardless of whether they are subject to mandatory branding.

The data also indicate changes in the number of participants in the precious metals market. In the fourth quarter of 2022, 22,722 entities were registered with the Federal Test Chamber, and in the fourth quarter of 2023 this number decreased to 22,049. However, according to the Ministry of Finance of the Russian Federation, in the second half of 2023, the number of new participants exceeded the number of those who left the market - 1,393 against 957, which indicates the stabilization and strengthening of the sector.^[1]

2022: Precious metals mining in Russia up 10.3%

In 2022, the extraction of precious metals in Russia reached 3 thousand tons, which is 10.3% more than a year earlier. This is evidenced by the data of the analytical company BusinesStat, which were released in June 2023.

According to the researchers, the military special operation of the Russian Federation in Ukraine led to negative consequences for subsoil users - the costs in the industry increased significantly. The cost of geological exploration, as well as the price of raw materials, materials and fuel, increased to the greatest extent. Difficulties with the supply of spare parts for imported equipment also lead to an increase in costs. As a result, the cost of a cubic meter of mining in Russia by 2022 was estimated at almost 1.5 times higher than the average in the world.

At the same time, the strengthening of the ruble in 2022 reduced the revenues of the mining industry. Ruble revenue from sales of a gram of precious metals fell by almost 30%. This led to the termination of the activities of small enterprises, especially those operating on placers.

On the domestic market, the Central Bank of the Russian Federation stopped buying gold at world prices and introduced a large discount. At the same time, the sanctions significantly limited the export market for domestic precious metals. Commercial Russian banks also fell under the sanctions. Thus, the export of precious metals has become sharply difficult due to problems with logistics and calculations.

Some mining companies were able to enter new export channels by building new logistics and settlement chains. The main buyers of precious metals from Russia were China, India and the countries of the Arab region.

According to the study, in 2022, against the backdrop of a new crisis, imports of precious metal concentrates to Russia decreased by 15.8% compared to 2021 and amounted to 68.2 thousand tons. Supplies of precious metal concentrates from Greece decreased most significantly (by 12.8 thousand tons).^[2]

Notes