Pandora, a world leading manufacturer and marketer of hand-finished, contemporary fashion jewelry, announced it is making good progress toward the brand's relaunch on 29 August. Pandora jewelry, which has become known for its high-quality materials and affordable prices, is sold in more than 100 countries on six continents through more than 7,500 points of sale, including more than 2,700 conc...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sotheby's has collaborated with Chinese jewelry designer Anna Hu on a five-piece collection featuring a 100-carat, fancy-intense-yellowdiamond necklace. Hu's Silk Road Music Collection will go under the hammer atthe October Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite auction in Hong Kong, with theDunhuang Pipa piece leading the sale. Inspired by the image of a lady playingthe pipa -a four-stri...Read More
RAPAPORT... Revenue at Michael Hill fell in the last fiscal year amid a difficultretail environment and the company's shift away from its previous discountingstrategy. Group revenue at the Australia-based jeweler fell 1% to AUD569.5 million ($386.2 million) for the year ending June 30. Same-storesales - at branches open more than a year - slipped 3.3% to AUD 524.7 million($355.8 million), the...Read More
RAPAPORT... Manufacturers coated a rough diamond with a green substanceto imitate a natural color, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) saidafter the stone turned up for grading at its Carlsbad laboratory. The presence of chromium oxide powder on the surface ofthe 6.49-carat crystal was a rare case, as color coatings are more common withfaceted stones than with rough, and tend to be pink, or...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Diamond Producers Association (DPA) has released a campaign that aims to challenge misconceptions about diamond mining inan effort to capture millennial consumers. "The goal is to convey some of the key facts and truthsabout natural diamonds in a compelling, cinematic way that will engageviewers," a DPA spokesperson told Rapaport News last week. The video, called Essential Dia...Read More
The Association Fran?? ?aise de Gemmologie (the French Association of Gemmology) has announced the line-up of speakers for the 18th Paris Gemmological Rendez Vous, its prestigious annual gems symposium, which will take place on September 9, 2019, at: l'ASIEM, 6 rue Albert de Lapparent, Paris, France. Among the speakers are: Alan Bronstein, President of the Natural Color Diamond Association A...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) has promoted IanRowe to executive director. He will replace Doroth?(C)e Gizenga, who will lead theorganization's new Africa office. Rowe, who has served as deputy executive director of the DDIsince September 2018, was previously a director with the United Nations. He hasworked with civil-society organizations in the areas of development,so...Read More
The diamond company Forevermark is betting on India. The company believes that the India's middle-class consumption is key to its success in what is thought to becom the second largest consumer market for diamond jewelry. Talking to Moneycontrol, Sachin Jain, President, Forevermark India, said, "We are present in 60 markets in India. We are present in Tier I, II, III and IV markets." Re...Read More
Botswana’s Ministry of Mineral Resources, Green Technology and Energy Security has granted a renewal of TSX-listed Tsodilo Resources’ prospecting licence in the country for an additional two years, ending September 30, 2021.The licence area, which is within the Orapa Kimberlite Field (OKF), contains the company’s BK16 kimberlite project.AdvertisementTsodilo plans to soon start a...Read More
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) will host a Jewelry Career Fair and Open House at the organization's world headquarters in Carlsbad, California on Friday, October 11, 2019.The free event will feature panel discussions, career coaching and recruiting for people new to the industry and professionals looking for a career change; classroom demonstrations for aspiring gemologists, jewel...Read More
The Yellowknife Crown of Light diamond cutting facility. (Photo by Crown of Light)Earlier this month, a new diamond polishing factory started operating in Yellowknife, in Canada's Northwest Territories (NWT). The plant, called Yellowknife Crown of Light, which is owned by Almod Diamond, reportedly received its first shipment of rough diamonds from De Beers at its facility near Yellowknife...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) has promoted IanRowe to executive director. He will replace Doroth?(C)e Gizenga, who will lead theorganization's new Africa office. Rowe, who has served as deputy executive director of the DDIsince September 2018, was previously a director with the United Nations. He hasworked with civil-society organizations in the areas of development,so...Read More
Aim-listed BlueRock Diamonds, which operates the Kareevlei mine, in the Kimberley region of South Africa, sold a 7.63 ct diamond for $52 000 during its August tender.This is the company’s fifth diamond to sell for more than $50 000 this year.Advertisement“The continued and improving regularity of discovery of high-quality stones underpins the potential value of the project and the effe...Read More
RAPAPORT... Manufacturers coated a rough diamond with a green substanceto imitate a natural color, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) saidafter the stone turned up for grading.The presence of chromium oxide powder on the surface ofthe 6.49-carat crystal was a rare case, as color coatings are more common withfaceted stones than with rough, and tend to be pink, orange, red or blue, theGIA ex...Read More
RAPAPORT... Revenue at Gem Diamonds fell in the first half of the yearamid weakness in the market. Sales of rough diamonds from the Let??engmine in Lesotho plunged 44% to $94.5 million by value, and dropped10% to 55,714 carats by volume, the miner reported last week. The average price declined to $1,697 percarat, compared with $2,742 per carat in the same period a year ago. Total sales w...Read More
RAPAPORT... A 10.64-carat pink diamond ring worth up to $25.5 millionwill go under the hammer at Sotheby's Hong Kong sale. The fancy-vivid-purplish-pink center stone is internallyflawless, the auction house told Rapaport News Friday. Sotheby's willoffer the piece, which is flanked by white diamonds, at its Magnificent Jewelsand Jadeite sale on October 7. The ring has a presale estimate of HKD...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers will allow more rejections than usual at thisweek's sight, aiming to ease pressure on the market without reducing prices. Customers will be free to refuse 50% of available goods amid a slump in rough demand, a broker told RapaportNews on condition of anonymity. The company will also buy back up to 20% ofsightholders' purchases, compared with the standard 10%, he added. Unlike...Read More
RAPAPORT... Albert Milton, managing director of De Beers'Botswana joint venture, has died, the company said Friday. Milton passed away early Friday morning after becomingunwell Thursday night in Johannesburg, where he was admitted to the hospital. "De Beers is shocked and saddened by the sudden death ofAlbert Milton," the miner said. "We extend our deepest condolences to Albert'sfamily, rela...Read More
RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. has launched its first comprehensive collection of men'sjewelry, breaking away from its traditional style by offering a more modern alternative. The move is part of the retailer's plan to attract a wideraudience and appeal to millennial consumers. While in the past Tiffany hasoffered a range of men's products, including money clips, cuff links and rings,the new c...Read More
The Gulf Times published an interesting news item, reporting on how couples chose their engagement rings. Here is an excerpt. The full article can be read here. "When Megan Shoemaker's boyfriend proposed to her in February 2017, he knew better than to purchase a classic engagement ring dominated by a glittering white diamond. Instead, he selected a grey marquise-cut sometimes calle...Read More