RAPAPORT... Belgium has registered its seventh consecutive monthly increase in polished-diamond exports, with shipments growing 32% year on year in September. A rise in the average price outweighed a slight decline in volume, according to Rapaport calculations based on recent data from the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC).Belgium Trade Data for September 2021 Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales at Lucara Diamond Corp. jumped in the third quarter as the miner recovered higher-value stones and benefited from its supply deal with a Belgian manufacturer.Revenue leaped 76% year on year to $72.7 million for the three months ending September 30, the Canada-based company reported Wednesday. The average selling price almost doubled to $619 per carat from $365 per carat a ye...Read More
RAPAPORT... Firestone Diamonds has appointed Rob De Pretto as CEO to succeed Paul Bosma, who has left the company after seven years. De Pretto, who started November 1, was most recently the chief operating officer and acting CEO of Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC), Firestone said Wednesday. He has also held executive and leadership roles at Diamcor Mining, Anglo American Research...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A pair of blue diamond cluster earrings - 3.06 carats and 2.61 carats - are being offered with a high estimate of $8m at Sotheby's Hong Kong. Both pear modified brilliant-cut gems are GIA-certified as fancy vivid blue color, VS2 clarity.They are set with pear, oval and round diamonds, in platinum and gold, and signed DM (David Morris). Also in the sale is a 3.3...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A 26.80-carat sapphire brooch and matching earrings that were smuggled out of Russia during the 1917 revolution are to be sold at Sotheby's Geneva.The gems (pictured) belonged to Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna, of the Russian royal family, and were part of a large collection spirited away by a British diplomat.Bertie Stopford disguised himself as a workman and made his way to Lo...Read More
Diamond industry confident for holiday season. US trade upbeat amid steady retail orders. Indian suppliers take Diwali vacation. Dealers focusing on sales; buying has become difficult due to expensive rough and increased competition from large manufacturers selling direct to retailers. Polished prices stabilizing as buyers complete holiday orders. 1 ct. RAPI -0.2% in Oct. US polished imports+118%...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa says it will hold more frequent sales of polished diamonds after its latest auction raised almost $13m.The Russian miner sold 98 per cent of the gems offered, weighing over 1,400 carats, during September and October.The auction featured 49 exceptional polished diamonds weighing up to 28 carats, said Alrosa, as well as 284 diamonds weighing up to 17 carats - colorless, fancy...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers has launched a new campaign to promote diamonds, expanding "I do" beyond its traditional wedding context to include any kind of personal pledge.It has also resurrected the iconic "A Diamond Is Forever" tagline for the first time since the 1990s and emphasized the importance of sustainability. "Today we see a new generation of consumers who wish to communicate a wider...Read More
Month-on-month prices dipped slightly by 0.2 per cent in October, as they did in September, which would appear to indicate the start of a downwards trend. Prior to that, prices had been rising since March. They peaked with a 2.2 per cent increase in June, but slowed during July and August. IDEX Online subscribers please click here to read the full report. Read More
RAPAPORT... The International Grown Diamond Association (IGDA) has revamped itself, aiming to attract the raft of companies that have entered the sector in recent years."IGDA 2.0 will provide focused services to support the growing number of global lab-grown diamond companies," Dick Garard, the organization's executive director, said Tuesday. "We have an aggressive strategic plan that begins...Read More
RAPAPORT... Pandora has increased its sales outlook for the current year for the second time in four months following strong growth in the US in the third quarter.Sales will rise by 18% to 20% year on year on an organic basis for 2021, the Danish jewelry retailer predicted Monday. That compares with a previous forecast of 16% to 18%. Pandora now expects revenue for the full year to be between DKK...Read More
RAPAPORT... Lightbox, De Beers' lab-grown brand, has started disclosing the treatments it uses to create its synthetic diamonds - but still believes such declarations are optional.The new policy applies mainly to its Finest collection of D- to F-color, VVS-clarity stones, a premium offering the company launched in August. Lightbox grows the goods using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), and imp...Read More
RAPAPORT... The industry's focus is changing - or, at least, it should be, asserts Esther Oberbeck, senior vice president of strategy, analytics and insights at De Beers.Oberbeck joined the Rapaport Diamond Podcast to discuss some of the key findings from the De Beers Diamond Insight Report, which the company published last week. The report's central theme is sustainability, and it brought so...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Gabriel & Co has been named best-performing brand in a survey of over 350 independent US jewelers, for the fourth consecutive year.The New York-based jeweler was founded in 1989 by brothers Jack and Dominick Gabriel, after they were apprenticed to their father Elias, a master jeweler.Stuller and Allison-Kaufman took second and third places, as they did in 2020.The survey was pa...Read More
RAPAPORT... Burgundy Diamond Mines will establish a luxury boutique for polished fancy-color diamonds in Paris, in which it will sell its own stock as well as stones from third-party producers.The Australian miner, which has acquired the rights to the Ellendale mine, has purchased the Argyle Stella, one of the "hero" stones offered in Rio Tinto's final pink-diamond tender. The square radiant, 1.79...Read More
RAPAPORT PRESS RELEASE, November 2, 2021, Las Vegas... The diamond trade was busy in October as suppliers filled orders for the holiday season. The US market is fueling optimism, while there is caution about China's prospects. Polished demand is outpacing supply, but inventory levels are rising and buyers are pushing for higher discounts. The RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI?,,?) for 1-carat diamonds sl...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Two pairs of unique jewel-encrusted glasses - one with emerald lenses, the other with diamonds - were withdrawn from sale by Sotheby's New York after both failed to reach their low estimate of $2.1m.They are believed to have belonged to members of the Mughal Empire, which ruled over the Indian subcontinent during the 17th century.There was surprise among experts, who had expec...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales of jewelry and other hard-luxury items continued to rebound in September amid higher employment and increased funds from a government-backed stimulus program.Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts climbed 16% to HKD to 3.18 billion ($408.5 million) during the month, the municipality's Census and Statistics Department reported Tuesday. Sales across all reta...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds says illegal incursions at its Williamson mine, in Tanzania, are averaging more than one a day.The UK-listed miner announced in May that it had agreed a $6m settlement over alleged human rights breaches at the deposit, which is currently mothballed and classified as "an asset held for sale for financial reporting purposes".In a quarterly update to alleged human right...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Exclusive Lebanese jeweler Mouawad says it recreated the late Princess Diana's engagement ring for a new biopic about her life.It's described as a faithful copy, although the 1981 original featured a 12-carat oval blue Ceylon sapphire and the copy has a 7.25-carat gem.The ring, and other pieces of jewelry, were made for Spencer, starring US actress Kristen Stewart, charti...Read More