The Chinese jewelry industry recorded $25.9 billion in sales in 2007, up $2.88 billion over 2006, the market research firm Research and Markets reported.

This growth is faster than expected, and has made the jewelry industry China’s third biggest, after real estate and cars, the firm said. Jewelry imports into China last year were $6.2 billion, a 35.6 percent increase, and exports were $8 billion, a 16.8 percent increase.

Research and Markets also noted that there were more than 10,000 jewelry sales companies in China by the end of 2007, most of them small independents that did not have their own brands. Sources for the report included the Gems & Jewelry Trade Association of China, the China Gold Association, the Shanghai Diamond Exchange, the Ministry of Commerce, the National Bureaus of Statistics and provincial or local municipal statistics bureaus, along with financial statements released by some of China’s bigger jewelry firms.

Credit is given to the AFNS by Diamondtopics.com.