(IDEX Online) - Customs officials in India suspect smugglers after a 21kg consignment of gold was found at a domestic air cargo complex.Gold bangles disguised as silver accounted for the majority of the haul at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad (pictured) on Saturday. There were also foreign-marked gold biscuits weighing 2kg and gold jewelry.Almost all items are undocumented and...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Zoom meetings that constituted September's World Diamond Congress lacked the event's trademark pizzazz. The biennial conference, which combines the meetings of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) and the International Diamond Manufacturers Association (IDMA), usually involves a lot of cumbersome organizational housekeeping. But it also provides an opportunity to network...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) has identified four major trends that will shape consumer spending on jewelry this holiday season, the group revealed in a report published last week. "This season's trends offer something for everyone, but are particularly appealing to young, first-time diamond buyers,"said Jill Newman, NDC's editor-at-large. "It's a modern, contemporar...Read More
RAPAPORT... A new De Beers initiative will highlight the positive impact of natural diamonds on the areas in which they are mined.ReSet is a series of collaborations with different jewelry designers who will set diamonds discovered by De Beers into a variety of pieces that will celebrate sustainability in the sector, the miner said Monday. The first partnership, the ReSet Collective, will launch M...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The IDEX Polished Diamond Price Index rose gradually through September, closing the month up 0.8 per cent. That's an encouraging sign, especially after the 0.6 per cent rise in August, suggesting more of a positive trend than an isolated blip. It's also worth noting that the Index showed most growth in the last five days of the month, which may indicate the recovery...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A lawsuit against Octea, a subsidiary of Israeli diamond and real estate billionaire Beny Steinmetz's BSG Resources (BSGR), has been thrown out by a court in Sierra Leone.The High Court ruled last Wednesday that it was beyond its jurisdiction to hear the case and lifted a freeze on the defendants' assets.Lawyers claimed in February that an Octea-owned mine in the east of...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Workers at Canada's Ekati mine have reportedly been fired, seven months after operations were suspended because of COVID-Dominion Diamond Mines filed for insolvency in April and announced last month that being it was being bought by associates of its parent company The Washington Companies. "While this was an incredibly difficult decision, we simply cannot responsibly sta...Read More
RAPAPORT... Workers at De Beers' and Petra Diamonds' operations in South Africa are planning to go on strike after the parties failed to reach an agreement in their respective wage talks.Members of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) will begin a "protected strike" - meaning union workers cannot be disciplined by their employer for taking part - once they receive final approval, NUM said...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers will expand the availability of its Lightbox line of lab-grown diamond jewelry through partnerships with 10 independent jewelers in the US and Canada.The brand will launch at 28 stores in the midwest, northern California and the east coast, including Diamond Cellar, The Jewelry Center and DeVons Jewelers. IJL, in Canada, will also carry Lightbox in its locations, the lab-grown...Read More
RAPAPORT... A number of US retailers will launch their holiday sales earlier this year as a way to prevent overcrowding by last-minute shoppers and minimize health and safety risks."Retailers are prepared for an early start to the shopping season, offering discounts earlier to ensure consumers can find the gifts they want," National Retail Federation (NRF) CEO Matthew Shay said last week. The holi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Organizers of the ill-fated Baselworld have announced details of its successor, HourUniverse.And they have revealed the event's tag line - It's We Time - to the amusement of some in the trade press.MCH Group describe HourUniverse in a press release as "a hybrid platform that serves the watch, jewellery and gemstone community with a year-round, modern digital of...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond miners in South Africa are threatening to strike at De Beers and Petra after pay talks collapsed.The industrial action, announced on Friday, will also affect Exxaro, the biggest coal supplier to state-owned electricity company Eskom.De Beers has reportedly offered a 1.5 per cent increase in response to union demands for an eight per cent rise for all workers.William Mabapa,...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The world's largest black lab-grown diamond has been by produced by UK-based Meylor, weighing in at just under 116 carats.The 115.65-carat (29.40mm x 27.90mm x 23.44mm) Type IIb rough crystal was graded by the International Gemological Institute (IGI) and has been recognized by Guinness World Records. The company also produced a second, slightly smaller black d...Read More
Trading quiet due to Chinese and Jewish holidays and Covid-19 uncertainty. Expectations low for Oct. 1 Golden Week Hong Kong retail sales. Global brands focusing on China and e-commerce as mainland luxury shoppers limit travel, impacting seasonal sales at Hong Kong, New York and London flagships. Government crackdown on diamond smugglers ensures level playing field for legitimate traders looking t...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) has reshuffled its leadership team, with president Nishit Parikh retiring and six new members joining the board.Parikh, the CEO of Diarough, chose not to run again following two years in the position, the AWDC said Thursday. The Belgian organization will elect a new president from among its members.Meanwhile, the AWDC held "Covid-19-safe" el...Read More
(IDEX Online) - An exceptional 119-carat untreated royal blue Burmese sapphire is to be sold by Sotheby's.The auction house says it's the largest sapphire of its kind it has ever offered.The legendary Rockefeller Sapphire, which is half the size, sold for $3m in 2001. The 62.02 carat rectangular step cut stone was bought in 1934 by the billionaire John D. Rockefeller Jr from an Indian Ma...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Indian government has permitted rough-diamond importers to correct errors on Kimberley Process (KP) certificates, removing an obstacle that had been preventing the clearance of goods.The country's Directorate General of Foreign Trade has empowered the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) to approve fixes to technical or typographical mistakes. The new rule appl...Read More
RAPAPORT... China has arrested 121 people suspected of bringing CNY 3.88 billion (around $570 million) in diamonds into the country through illegal channels since 2015, according to a state-owned newspaper.Officials seized more than 2,520 diamonds, more than 4,000 broken diamonds, and 158 pieces of diamond jewelry during the raid in early September, China Daily reported last week. Authorities...Read More
RAPAPORT... Mountain Province shareholders have approved a refinancing deal that will allow one of its major investors to buy out its current credit facility.Dunebridge Worldwide, which is controlled by Dermot Desmond, who owns just over 32% of Mountain Province's stock, will take ownership of the $25 million secured loan held by the miner's existing lenders, Mountain Province said Wednesday. Dune...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond factories will remain open in Surat, India, over the Diwali, the Hindu festival of light, to fulfil export orders.Manufacturers in the world's cutting and polishing capital say they can't afford to turn away business and take the traditional two-to-four-week break.An estimated 650,000 artisans will carry on working over the festive period (Diwali is 14 November th...Read More