RAPAPORT... Gem Legacy, a nonprofit that provides training, education and community development in East African colored-gemstone mining regions, has launched a for-profit adventure travel company.The business, called Gem Legacy Adventures, will offer guided tours of various initiatives run by the nonprofit and the areas in which it operates, it said Monday. Participants will also be taken on safar...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A lab grown diamond made from salad seasoning is being sold for the charity Feeding America.Chicago-based Hidden Valley had its Original Ranch Dressing used as the graphite carbon seed to begins the growing process.After five months growing in the lab, the rough stone was cut into a 2.01-ct G/VVS1 round and set in a 14K white gold band.It has the initials HVR LVR ???,?" for "Hidden...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Hong Kong's Jewellery & Gem World (JGW) trade show will relocate to Singapore in September, where Covid restrictions are less stringent.Organizers Informa Markets Jewellery said the new venue would be more accessible.Hong Kong currently bans flights from nine countries including the United States and Britain, operates a "dynamic zero" strategy to curb infections and has be...Read More
RAPAPORT... A number of diamond pieces scored big at the most recent Christie's jewelry sale, outshining their presale estimates and driving an auction total of $2.8 million.The top seller was a ring featuring an old-cut, 25.14-carat diamond, which fetched $424,538 - more than double its $164,092 upper estimate, Christie's said last week.A pair of old-cut diamond earrings from 1960 also performed...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A pair of Boucheron earrings featuring 14.00-ct and 13.75-ct pear-shaped diamonds sold for $1.26m at Sotheby's New York.They led the Important Jewels auction last Wednesday, which raised a total of $12.4m.The detachable pear-shaped diamonds are both Type IIa, a 14.00-ct D/VS1 and a 13.75-ct D/VVS2, as certified by GIA. They are set in 18K gold, together with around 7.80-ct of...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sotheby's brought in $12.4 million from its Important Jewels sale in New York, with a pair of diamond earrings by Boucheron taking the top spot.The set features marquise- and pear-shaped diamond clusters suspending two detachable pear-shaped diamonds - a D-color, VS1-clarity stone weighing 14 carats and a D-color, VVS2-clarity diamond weighing 13.75 carats. The pair fetched $1.3 millio...Read More
RAPAPORT... US jewelry sales rose in February amid a rebound in consumer spending on apparel and accessories, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse.Revenue for the jewelry category grew 22% year on year during the month, Mastercard reported last week. The segment also benefited from the extra cash shoppers diverted from their travel and restaurant budgets. Jewelry purchases jumped 24% compared to...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's polished diamond sales are set to plunge by more than a quarter, say the ratings analysts CRISIL."If the trade disruption is protracted, next quarter's sales will be down by 25 to 30 per cent, shaving off about $2bn to 2.5bn," said its director, Rahul Guha, speaking before Friday's announcement of sanctions by the US government on the purchase of rough diamon...Read More
RAPAPORT... US President Joe Biden has issued an executive order prohibiting the import of "nonindustrial" diamonds originating in Russia.The measures, which the White House announced on Friday, follow Russia's continued war in Ukraine and build on earlier US sanctions outlawing debt and equity transactions with Alrosa and its CEO, Sergey Ivanov. Those previous rulings did not constitute an o...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Nothing Lasts Forever, the new documentary that claims to lift the lid on the "highly secretive" diamond industry, premiered yesterday on the US network Showtime.The trailer opens with a provocative observation about lag growns: "People want diamonds because they've been told to. None of them are really worth anything and, surprise, your big diamond might be fake!"Jason Kohn s...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The US has imposed sanctions on gem quality diamonds from Russia, which accounts for almost 30 per cent of global rough supply.President Joe Biden (pictured) issued an executive order on Friday banning the import of "non-industrial diamonds", along with vodka, caviar and other luxury goods."As Putin continues his merciless assault, the United States and our allies and partner...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The company behind the first regulator-approved diamond commodity is now offering investors a higher-value diamond bar, in addition to the coins it launched last year.New York-based Diamond Standard says it has received regulatory approval for the 70mm by 35mm transparent bar containing "a set of certified natural diamonds with identical geological scarcity".They each have an initi...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's diamond trade is likely to see a slowdown in sales in the coming months as a result of the Russia crisis, according to a major credit agency in the country.The removal of several Russian banks from the Swift international payment system has made it difficult to complete transactions, potentially causing supply disruptions, Crisil - part of S&P Global - said in a statem...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's only industrial diamond mine sold over 8,000 carats in an e-auction, though it did not disclose prices or further details.There are over 1,000 licensed artisanal mines in the country, but only the state-run Majhgawan mine, in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, is mechanized.Mining at Majhgawan (pictured) has been stopped several times over the last 50 years because o...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Two men have been jailed for a $400,000 armed raid on a jewelry store on the outskirts of Chicago, USA. They stole watches by Frederique Constant, Patek Phillipe and Tudor, as well as high-value jewelry from Razny Jewelers (pictured) in Hinsdale, Ilinois, in March 2017.The defendants later "sold, attempted to sell, or disposed of some of the stolen items" in the Chicago area a...Read More
Russian sanctions unlikely to reduce rough supplies since Indian firms are seeking alternative payment methods and can legally sell resulting polished to America. Sanctions are on payment methods and not on diamonds. Surging commodity prices and inflation are rocking markets. Gold breaks $2,000/ounce. Polished prices stabilizing as consumers battle higher gas and food costs. Rough market cooling a...Read More
RAPAPORT... Helzberg Diamonds' lab-grown products saw strong growth last year as the lower prices let consumers buy larger stones, according to the company's CEO.The 2-carat lab-grown diamond has become "the new 1-carat mined diamond," Beryl Raff said in a panel discussion at the recent Dubai Diamond Conference."In 2021, we sold, in units, 50 times more 2-carat labs than we sold 2-carat mined...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers' recorded strong sales at its February sight as rough demand persisted and prices rose in select categories.Proceeds jumped 18% year on year to $650 million at its second sales cycle of 2022, compared with $550 million a year earlier, the miner reported Wednesday. Sales were slightly lower than the $660 million the company registered at the first cycle in January."The sec...Read More
RAPAPORT... Current US sanctions on Russia's Alrosa will not reduce the supply of rough diamonds. India, where about 93% of the world's diamonds are manufactured, will enable money transfers without using dollars, euros or the SWIFT system. Americans will continue to legally buy polished diamonds from Indian or other cutters who have sourced the rough from Alrosa, as the diamonds themselves a...Read More
RAPAPORT... Firestone Diamonds' Liqhobong mine will remain dormant after months of debt negotiations fell at the final hurdle.The company had been in talks with its lenders over restructuring its $82.4 million outstanding debt, it said Tuesday. The Lesotho-based deposit has been on care and maintenance during that time. The company had hoped to complete the discussions and set a plan to reopen the...Read More