The United States isn't just the world's most powerful economy, it is also the world's largest consumer of diamonds: some 50% of the world's diamonds are traded in the United States. That's quite a lot for a nation with almost no viable diamond resources of its own.

The American People became intrigued with things that shine back in the mid-19th century, when gold was first discovered in the California. In 1848, when James Wilson Marshall found gold at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California, some 300,000 people from the United States and all over the world literally rushed to California to get their piece of the shiny yellow metal.

Other than contributing to the American People's affection for jewelry, the gold rush helped build the United States as an economic powerhouse. Capitalism became one of the nation's fundamental principles, and with it came the desire for materialistic belongings, such as gold, diamonds, jewelry and whatnot.

The diamond cutting trade arrived in the United States during the 1940s, when thousands of Orthodox Jews fled the Netherlands and Belgium, which were invaded by Nazi Germany at the time. Many of them were diamond traders and diamonds cutters and polishers who settled in what soon became known as the Diamond District.

The Diamond District today is one of the world's main centers for diamond trade, with some 2,600 diamond and jewelery stores scattered around it. It is located on West 47th St. between the 5th and 6th Avenues, and if you somehow fail to find it, you can always follow the long trail of men with black long jackets and big hats.

Diamonds and jewelry, and particularly diamond rings, have become a inseparable part of the American society. Before the 1930, diamond rings were not used often as engagement rings. But that soon changed when diamond giant De Beers launched its advertising campaign, “A Diamond is Forever.” Through a sophisticated campaign, De Beers managed to convince the American People that diamond engagement rings are a must, the more expensive the better. Today this is practically an indisputable fact.

The recent and ongoing global financial crisis has probably hit the United States the most. The diamond industry in the US was no exception, and many independent diamond businesses were forced to shut down, as did some decades-old jewelry and diamond giants. Americans are not buying as much as they used to, especially when it comes to luxury items. In spite of it all, the United States is still the leading consumer of diamonds.

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