Dubai Multi Commodities Centre has launched a dedicated platform for the lab-grown diamond industry as trade volumes in the UAE are at a high and the sector expands into advanced technology and industrial applications.
The UAE traded 76.9 million carats of lab-grown diamonds in 2025, up 91.5 per cent year on year, while the value of trade rose 7.5 per cent to $1.3 billion, DMCC said.
Volumes have more than doubled from 36.8 million carats in 2022, with imports and re-exports growing at broadly similar rates.
DMCC’s new Lab-Grown Diamond Vertical will operate separately from its natural diamond and coloured stone activities, reflecting the various economics of a sector increasingly shaped by scalable manufacturing, technology and industrial demand.
“Lab-grown diamonds have reached the point where they need dedicated market infrastructure and a distinct economic case of their own, developed alongside the natural diamond trade rather than in place of it,” said Ahmed bin Sulayem, executive chairman and chief executive of DMCC.
Dubai is seeking to position itself as a global hub for the sector by connecting producers, manufacturers, traders, investors, finance providers, technology companies and industrial users.
China, India and the US have been central to the industry’s expansion. China is a major centre for industrial-scale production and research, India has developed significant manufacturing and processing capacity, while the US remains a key technology and consumer market.
Beyond jewellery, lab-grown diamonds are increasingly being developed for advanced industrial uses because of their thermal, optical and semiconductor properties. Potential applications include semiconductors and diamond wafers, quantum technology, aerospace and precision engineering.
DMCC has been expanding its presence in the sector in recent years and has hosted two lab-grown diamond symposia, with another planned for 2027.
The UAE’s total diamond trade reached a record $41.7 billion in 2025.
