RAPAPORT... Phillips has hired Alexis Vourvoulis to help build up itsjewelry business in Los Angeles, a key target market for the company. "The move reflects the growth of the Phillips jewelrydepartment and the increasing importance of California to the company'sexpansion," the auction house said Tuesday. Vourvoulis is the sixth new hire for the department since thebeginning of 2018, and the thir...Read More
LONDON – De Beers will let buyers reject more diamonds at a sale next week as the mining company shows almost unprecedented flexibility to ease a growing crisis.The Anglo American unit has told customers they can refuse to buy half of the stones offered that are smaller than three-quarters of a carat, according to people familiar with the situation, who asked not to be identified as the matt...Read More
Canadian diamond miner Mountain Province is no longer complying with the minimum bid price requirement of the Nasdaq and has until February 10 to regain compliance with the stock exchange’s listing rules.Based on the closing bid price for the last 30 consecutive business days from June 28 to August 12, the 49%-participant in the Gahcho Kué mine in Canada is not in compliance with the...Read More
RAPAPORT... Pandora is set to repurchase DKK 500 million ($74.7 million)of unsold jewelry from retailers that stock its products, the company said. The Danish jeweler believes this will reduce the quantity of goods its clients keep in stock for long periods. The company plans to smelt and recycle the old jewelry to make new collections, a company spokesperson told Rapaport News ...Read More
RAPAPORT... Jewelry imported into the US from China will attract an extra levyof 10%, despite the Trump administration's decision to postpone tariffs onother goods. While certain health-and-safety products are being removedfrom the prospective tariff list, other items - including toys, computer equipment, video games andclothing - havereceived a temporary reprieve, the US government said Tues...Read More
MOSCOW – A 14.83-ct pink gem found and cut by Alrosa is expected to fetch one of the highest prices ever for a diamond when the Russian company puts it up for sale later this year.The oval stone, named The Spirit of the Rose, has been certified by the Gemological Institute of America as fancy vivid purple-pink with excellent clarity, excellent polish and very good symmetry, said Alrosa spoke...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa is preparing to sell a rare, 14.83-carat pink laterthis year, as the Russian miner continues its efforts to build up itscolored-diamond business. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) graded theoval-shaped diamond as fancy vivid purple pink, with internally flawlessclarity, "excellent" polish, and "very good" symmetry. The GIA said the stonewas the largest of that color cat...Read More
RAPAPORT... Polished-diamond imports to Hong Kong declined 6% in thefirst half, according to data from the Diamond Federation of Hong Kong,China. Lower volumes outweighed growth in the average price, the figuresshowed.Hong Kong Trade Data for 1H 2019 $ Millions unless stated otherwiseRead More
RAPAPORT... India's diamond and jewelry trade is hoping to take market share from Chinese suppliers after the US government announced a hike on import duties from China. There's a changing world order and India is well placed to capitalize on these changes, stressed Pramod Agrawal, chairman of the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), at the opening of the India International...Read More
RAPAPORT... Diamond traders have raised concerns ahead of next month's Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair, as mass protests have caused chaos and dented local demand. The show will still take place as planned, organizersInforma Markets confirmed to Rapaport News Friday. However, access to the venues is currently difficult,according to dealers, who are pinning their hopes on unrest in the city rece...Read More
Organized by the Continental Buying Group and Preferred Jewelers International, the new Diplomat show will be held right after Labor Day on September 4, 5, and 6. at the newly renovated Diplomat Hotel and Resort in Hollywood Florida, in a statement, the organizers said that "As we head into the critical fourth quarter, [we will be] offering great opportunities for retailers to fill up their cases...Read More
The NewZimbabwe.com news website took a bit closer lo at the deal made between Russian diamond exploration and mining giant Alrosa and the state-owned Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC). Alrosa will have 70 percent stake in its joint venture with in Manicaland with a provision set for possible expansion "in the territory of the whole country." Information Minister Monica Mutsvangwa conf...Read More
The last two days of the International India Jewellery Show, held at Mumbai's Bombay Exhibition Centre, saw a low turn-out, IDEX's on-site reporter Vismay Bhanhkaria noted. "You'd expect to see a much larger turn-put of visitors on a Sunday - August 11. Of course, attendance on the last day of the show, Monday August 12, was very minor and exhibitors were packing up by noontime."...Read More
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Replacing diesel machines with zero-emitting fuel cell electrical equipment can reduce the cost of underground mine ventilation and lower health risk, says Hydrogen Infrastructure (HySA) director Dr Dmitri Bessarabov, who adds that renewable hydrogen can also be used to mitigate air pollution at Eskom power stations.HySA, which has a clean mining ventil...Read More
RAPAPORT... Revenue from Angola's national diamond-trading company,Sodiam, rose 3.9% year on year in the second quarter, with the government separately noting an increase in prices. Prices of Angola's diamonds have increased since the implementation of the country's new, more competitive diamond-trading policy last year, the government said in a Facebook post last week. That program allows mi...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports slid 18% year on year inJuly, reaching their lowest level since December 2018. The decline reflected aslowdown in the midstream sector as manufacturers struggled to offload excess goods. Rough trading alsodropped significantly, according to data from the Gem & Jewellery ExportPromotion Council. India Trade Data for July 2019Read More
RAPAPORT... Sarine Technologies saw a sharp decline in revenue duringthe second quarter, as an oversupply in the midstream led to lower sales of manufacturing equipment. Sales fell 35% year on year to $11.6 million for the threemonths ending June 30, the Israel-based company said last week. Revenue fromIndia -Sarine's largest market - dropped 32% to $8.2 million. Sales inAfrica plunged 63% to...Read More
Macauhub, an online news service, reported that the share capital held wholly or partially by the government of Angola in 195 different companies will be sold between 2019 and 2022, under the Privatization Program, published in the Diario da Republica official bulletin, as per the Portuguese-language Jornal de Angola. The program states that 175 companies will be sold via public tender, 11 by publ...Read More
Insideretail.asia reported that LVMH has bought a cornerstone share in Stella McCartney House. Full details of the deal will be released in September, however LVMH has confirmed Stella McCartney will continue as creative director and ambassador of her brand, while holding majority ownership. LVMH's archrival house Kering previously held a stake in Stella McCartney House until the celebrity bo...Read More
The luxury market analyst Pam Danziger, writing for Forbes, reported that a new study argues that Millennials are about to radically transform the luxury market by 2025. What Millennials expect from luxury brands is radically different from previous generations, she wrote. The study was by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Altagamma, and concerns the United States and China, the world's...Read More