(IDEX Online) - Sales of fine jewelry and fine watches increased by 3.2 percent in the U.S. market in October compared to October 2018, as shown in the graph below. This is the fourth successive month in which sales have increased since the start of the year, evidence that the market is solidly picking up at last. OutlookRetailers are anxiously awaiting the outcome of the all-important...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Total U.S. jewelry sales increased 1.8 percent over the holiday shopping period, according to figures from Mastercard SpendingPulse. Online jewelry sales grew by 8.8 percent from November 1-December 24.Overall, U.S. retail sales grew 3.4 percent (excluding auto sales) this holiday season, with online sales up 18.8 percent compared to 2018. "E-commerce sales hit a record...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa has ended the year on a strong note with the discovery of a 191-carat rough stone from the Botuobinskaya kimberlite pipe in Yakutia. The Russian mining company said the Christmas Day find has high quality characteristics.The diamond will be sent to Alrosa's United Selling Organization for a detailed evaluation.Mining at the Botuobinskaya pipe began in 2015. The pipe is...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa has recovered a rough stone weighing 190.77 carats from its Botuobinskaya pipe in the Siberian republic of Yakutia.The company has estimated the white, high-quality diamond is approximately 2 billion years old. It plans to send it to the company's United Selling Organization for a more detailed evaluation, the miner said last week."The discovery of such a large and high-qua...Read More
Good momentum as Mastercard reports holiday jewelry sales +1.8%, driven by +8.8% growth in e-commerce. General retail +3.4%. Mall traffic down but more people buying. Stores focused on creating unique customer experience. Tiffany & Co. holiday revenue up 1% to 3%, with strength in China and improvement in Europe and America. Polished trading slow as dealers close for Christmas-New Year. Diaman...Read More
Polished business slow. Fewer foreign buyers in the market. Some Chinese demand ahead of Lunar Festival. Local jewelers focused on gold products during wedding season. Rough sector seasonally quiet. Manufacturers cautiously raising polished production in anticipation of better orders in 1Q. RoundRead More
RAPAPORT... Jewelry sales in the US rose 1.8% during the holiday period, amid strong growth in e-commerce purchasing. Online sales of jewelry rose 9% during the two-month period, according to data from Mastercard SpendingPulse, which tracked purchases made from November 1 through Christmas Eve. Retail sales for all divisions - excluding automobiles - rose 3.4% year on year. Total online buyin...Read More
RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. noted a "momentum shift" in the Americas during the holidays, as growth in the region contributed to an overall increase in sales for the season.Company-wide revenue climbed by 1% to 3% year on year for the period from November 1 to December 24, the retailer reported Thursday. Sales in the Americas rose 2% to 4%, representing a turnaround from the decline Tiffany repo...Read More
RAPAPORT... HRD Antwerp has hired Ellen Joncheere as its CEO in the middle of a process to sell the company.Joncheere currently holds the same position at Fremach International, a supplier of car parts to the automotive industry. She will join HRD on January 20, succeeding interim CEO Michel Janssens, who will retire in mid-2020, a spokesperson for the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) said...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alorsa and Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) have signed a number of agreements to finalize the creation of a joint venture for prospecting and exploration works for primary diamond deposits in the Republic of Zimbabwe.According to the agreements, Alrosa owns 70 percent of Alrosa (Zimbabwe) Limited JV, with state-owned ZCDC getting 30 percent. The Russian mining com...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Tiffany & Co. have reported an increase of 1-3 percent (unaudited) in net sales for the period between November 1-December 24. The company said sales in the Chinese Mainland continue to drive overall sales growth, which saw a strong double-digit increase. However, this was offset by continuing sales declines in Hong Kong and, to a lesser degree, Japan, which has been affec...Read More
RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. noted a "momentum shift" in the Americas during the holidays, as growth in the region contributed to an overall increase in sales for the season.Company-wide revenue climbed by 1% to 3% year on year for the period from November 1 to December 24, the retailer reported Thursday. Sales in the Americas rose 2% to 4%, representing a turnaround from the decline Tiffany repo...Read More
RAPAPORT... The USdiamond trade continued to slow in October. Polished imports fell 38% to $1.45billion for the month, marking the steepest year-on-year drop since 2009 andthe seventh consecutive month of decline, according to Rapaport records. Polished exports dropped 35% to $1.07 billion, government data showed. US Trade Data for October 2019Read More
RAPAPORT... The past 10 years might be known for superheroes, Netflix and memes, but for Sotheby's it was all about record-breaking jewels, as worldwide sales for the divisiontotaled more than $4.7 billion. The auction house sold 40,353 items during the decade, including683 for more than $1 million and 41 topping $10 million, Sotheby's said lastweek. The 10 most valuable jewels ever sold at t...Read More
RAPAPORT... It wasn't that long ago that De Beers declared the 2010s "The Diamond Decade." Growth in China and India was projected to drive demand, while the US would take small steps out of recession. This is what Varda Shine, then-head of De Beers' supply arm, the Diamond Trading Company (DTC), predicted in a 2010 interview with Rough & Polished.In some sense, she was correct. The last 10 ye...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports fell 25% to $1.17 billion inNovember, reflecting a decline in the volume of shipments and the average price.However, rough imports increased 32%, partly due to the timing of Diwali, whichoccurred in October, whereas last year it was in November. Indian manufacturersclose for the festival season, resulting in lower rough demand.India Trade Data for Novem...Read More
RAPAPORT... The USdiamond trade continued to slow in October. Polished imports fell 38% to $1.45billion for the month, marking the steepest year-on-year drop since 2009 andthe seventh consecutive month of decline, according to Rapaport records. Polished exports dropped 35% to $1.07 billion, government data showed. US Trade Data for October 2019Read More
RAPAPORT... The past decade might be known for superheroes, Netflix and memes, but for Sotheby's it was all about record-breaking jewels, as worldwide sales for the divisiontotaled more than $4.7 billion. The auction house sold 40,353 items during the decade, including683 for more than $1 million and 41 topping $10 million, Sotheby's said lastweek. The 10 most valuable jewels ever sold at the...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa has sold a 20.69-carat polished yellow diamond to Graff, achieving one of the highest prices per caratfor a stone of its type in recent years, the miner said Tuesday. Alrosa did not disclose the final sale price of the Asscher-cut, fancy-vivid-yellow,VS1-clarity stone. However, the sale was significant as itwas made without the involvement of other parties, the company note...Read More
RAPAPORT... The upcoming International Diamond Week in Israel (IDWI) willfeature exhibitors from outside the country for the first time, in the hopes ofdrawing in more buyers. "There has been a lot of interest on the part of internationalcompanies to exhibit at the show, and this year we've decided to allow it,"explained IDWI chairman Ezra Boaron. "The diamond world thrives on trading, andI b...Read More