RAPAPORT... Phillips's Jewels and Jadeite auction in Hong Kong willfeature a rare Van Cleef & Arpels Zip necklace, one of only a few thejeweler made. The piece, which includes diamonds, sapphires and lapislazuli, is estimated at HKD 3.5 million to HKD 4.5 million ($446,4508 to$574,000). Wallis Simpson, the duchess of Windsor, initially suggestedthe design idea to Ren?(C)ePuissant, the co...Read More
RAPAPORT... The National Retail Federation (NRF) has forecast a strong risein US holiday sales, as a healthy economy outweighs tariff fears in the shortterm.Retail sales in November and December are expected toadvance 3.8% to 4.2% year on year, for a total of between $727.9 billion and$730.7 billion, the organization noted. The average increase over the past fiveyears was 3.7%, it added. "There is...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The National Retail Federation (NRF) is predicting holiday retail sales during November and December will increase between 3.8 percent and 4.2 percent over 2018 to a total of between $727.9 billion and $730.7 billion. This is just slightly above the average 3.7 percent increase seen over the past five years.NRF expects online and other non-store sales, which are included in the tot...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds has obtained a 10-year lease to continue miningat the lucrative Let??eng deposit in Lesotho, but will haveto pay a larger proportion of its sales proceeds to the government. The southern African kingdom has also given the miner an exclusive right to renew the lease for anadditional decade, the company said in a statement Friday. Gem Diamonds must pay 10% of diamond sa...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The mining lease for the Let?... ?eng mine in Lesotho has been renewed for 10 years, Gem Diamonds Ltd has announced. This is the maximum period allowed under the 2005 Mines and Minerals Act. Under the terms of the new lease, the royalty payable in respect of diamonds sold by Let?... ?eng has increased from 8 percent to 10 percent, effective immediately. Gem will continue...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Against the backdrop of ongoing pro-democracy protests, retail sales in Hong Kong registered the largest year-on-year decline on record. All aspects of trade have been hit with the jewelry, watch, clock and valuable gifts category seeing a massive 47 percent decline in August.Department stores sales fell 30 compared to a year ago with 30-80 percent of the city's stores closed...Read More
RAPAPORT... The National Retail Federation (NRF) has forecast a strong risein US holiday sales, as a healthy economy outweighs tariff fears in the shortterm.Retail sales in November and December are expected toadvance 3.8% to 4.2% year on year, for a total of between $727.9 billion and$730.7 billion, the organization noted. The average increase over the past fiveyears was 3.7%, it added. "There is...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rio Tinto has unveiled a necklace-and-ring set worth $1.1million, created from 673 diamonds recovered from its Argyle mine in Australia. The jewels, called Argyle Dreaming, were handcrafted byjewelry designer John Calleija using pink, white, yellow, blue and champagnediamonds, as well as gold from Rio Tinto's Kennecott mine in the US, thecompany said last week. Pieces in the set,...Read More
RAPAPORT... The National Retail Federation (NRF) has forecast a strong risein US holiday sales, as a healthy economy outweighs tariff fears in the shortterm.Retail sales in November and December are expected toadvance 3.8% to 4.2% year on year, for a total of between $727.9 billion and$730.7 billion, the organization noted. The average increase over the past fiveyears was 3.7%, it added. "There is...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds has obtained a 10-year lease to continue miningat the lucrative Let??eng deposit in Lesotho, but will haveto pay a larger proportion of its sales proceeds to the government. The southern African kingdom has also given the miner an exclusive right to renew the lease for anadditional decade, the company said in a statement Friday. Gem Diamonds must pay 10% of diamond sa...Read More
ASX-listed Newfield Resources has completed the blasting of the boxcut for the portal access to the underground declines at its Tongo diamond mine, in Sierra Leone."Work is now focussed on providing the necessary support of the boxcut and shaping of the haul road to attain the right angle of entry into the decline.Advertisement"With the recent signing of the lease agreement for the minin...Read More
The government of Lesotho has renewed the mining lease for LSE-listed Gem Diamonds' Lets?OEeng mine for ten years.This followed a statutory negotiation process between Gem and the Lesotho Mining Board.Advertisement"Gem Diamonds is proud of our long-standing partnership with the government and the people of Lesotho. The mining lease renewal will allow the Lets?OEeng mine to conti...Read More
Lawyers and activists have warned about the rising modern global slave trade, saying that millions of modern slavery victims are exploited in global supply chains.They are enslaved across the spectrum, from farming, domestic work and construction to clothing factories, mines, the beauty industry and the cleaning industry, says Australia-based legal expert Frazer Hunt. AdvertisementHe told th...Read More
RANDJESFONTEIN (miningweekly.com) – The Environment Ministry is the most important ministry in the government, former mining luminary Nicky Oppenheimer said at this week’s tenth Oppenheimer Research Conference.“Environment is at the forefront of everybody’s mind, and we in South Africa are unbelievably blessed with the environment in which we find ourselves. The beaches, th...Read More
Wet-processing equipment companyCDE South Africa is targeting iron-ore and gold mining operations with low-grade ore and tailings dumps, as it believes this is where potential for growth lies in South Africa. “In the iron-ore space, we have had a lot of success in beneficiating low-grade waste stores. We are introducing the benefits of wet processing to the mining sector in South Africa as t...Read More
Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds' share price on the LSE fell by nearly 28% on Friday after it announced that power supply issues had disrupted production at its 75%-owned Liqhobong diamond mine, in Lesotho.The mine receives its electricity from the Muela hydropower station (MHS), which is owned by the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC). The power station is located at the Katse dam, which is part...Read More
Trading quiet due to Chinese,Indian and Jewish holidays and weak market sentiment. Dealers cautious asfourth quarter begins. Jewelers limiting inventory purchases as shift to interactivedigital shopping experience and omni-channel reduces their in-store stockrequirements. Hong Kong retail sales slump asprotests escalate during Oct. 1 Golden Week. Lower midstream inventorysupporting polished prices...Read More
RAPAPORT... US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has blocked theimport of rough diamonds mined from the Marange fields in Zimbabwe, claimingthey were produced using forced labor. "CBP is firmly committed to identifying and preventingproducts made with the use of forced labor from entering the stream of UScommerce," Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner of the CBP office oftrade, sa...Read More
Short week due to GandhiJayanti national holiday. Few foreign buyers in Mumbai. Prices of 0.30 to 0.40ct., D-G, IF-VVS2 firming as inventory diminishes. Rough trading down.Manufacturers maintaining low production capacity ahead of Oct. 27 Diwalibreak. RoundRead More
RAPAPORT... The Central African Republic (CAR) on Thursday unveiled a program to overhaul its diamond sector, with the goal of increasing its export revenue. Diamond buyers operating in the country must pledge to improve transparency and meet the due-diligence guidelines set out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), according to a decree President Faustin-Archange T...Read More