Surat ranked 9th in India with GDP of $40 billion in the Fin Year 2011-12, which was $14 billion in 2010. The per capita GDP which was $8000 in 2010. Surat is known for diamonds, textiles and recently for diamond-studded gold jewelry manufacturing. Surat registered GDP of 11.5% for seven fiscal years from 2001-2008 which was the Fastest growing GDP in India. The City accounts for:
+ 90% of the world’s total rough diamond cutting and polishing,
+ 99.99% of the nation’s total rough diamond cutting and polishing,
+ 90% of the nation’s total diamond exports,
+ 40% of the nation’s total man made fabric production,
+ 28% of the nation’s total man made fibre production
+ 18% of the nation’s total man made fibre export, and
+ 12% of the nation’s total fabric production.
Diamond polishing
Surat is famous for its diamond industry and textile industry, along with silk and chemicals. It is at the heart of the world's diamond-polishing industry, which in 2005 cut 92% of the world's diamond pieces and earned India $15 billion in exports. Gujarati diamond cutters, emigrating from East Africa, established the industry in 1901 and, by the 1970s, Surat-based diamond cutters began exporting stones to the US for the first time. Though much of the polishing work takes place on small weight stones, Surat's workshops have set their eyes on the lucrative market for finishing larger, pricier stones in the future. 80 per cent of all diamonds sold in any part of the world are polished in Surat 's 10,000 diamond units.
The 18 November 2008 issue of the Wall Street Journal had an article about the diamond industry in Surat. It claims that 80% of the world's finished diamonds are cut and polished in this city. However the wages of the industry's workers remained flat for years and 250,000 workers, or one-third of the city's diamond industry
