(IDEX Online) - There was a slight overall increase, with more activity among rounds, some larger goods in particular, than fancies. Prices for rounds were up overall during July, but it was finely balanced. One-carats (1.00-1.24-cts) saw only a small handful of price changes, with more increases than decreases. 1.50-1.99-cts and 3.00-3.99-cts were busier, with plenty of price rises and no fa...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Diamond Dealers Club of South Africa has elected Molefi Letsiki to serve a three-year term as chairman.Letsiki, the owner of Molefi Letsiki Diamonds, was elected at the diamond exchange's 18th annual general meeting, which took place virtually on July 22, Letsiki told Rapaport News last week. Prior to taking over from Lionel Noach, Letsiki served as deputy chairman to both Noach an...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers founder Cecil Rhodes is to blame for 20,000 African deaths, says a leading Oxford University academic.Prof William Beinart says Rhodes was a "more brutal figure than previously thought" after researching his life for the commission appointed by Oriel College to consider whether a controversial statue should be removed. He held the "Rhodes Chair of Race Relations" from...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa is not used to buying diamonds. As the largest producer of rough by volume, the Russian miner accounts for about one-quarter of global supply and is therefore second only to De Beers in setting the tone for the market. It was therefore somewhat unusual that Alrosa bought the majority of rough at an auction held by Russia's state gemrepository Gokhran in July. The company is usu...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa increased its rough-diamond prices by around an average of 7% at this week's contract sale, customers of the miner told Rapaport News.The hikes impacted the full range of Alrosa's goods, though they were steeper for sizes above 2 carats, with some categories up by more than 10%, the clients said. The miner also adjusted its assortments, making some boxes appear significantl...Read More
Diamond market quieter as Belgium and Israel trades take vacation. Sentiment positive and prices firm. Dealers seeking opportunities and gaining confidence to buy at higher price levels. US retail recovery driving demand. Polished inventory rising following high-volume 1H rough purchases. RapNet listings exceed 1.5 million diamonds for first time since March 2020. Supply shortages persist due to I...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds has recovered a 342.92-carat Type IIa white diamond from its Cullian mine, in South Africa.The UK-listed miner said it was of exceptional color and clarity.In March, it sold a smaller rough stone from the same mine - a 299.3-carat white gem, also Type IIa - for $12.18m.It was bought by Stargems DMCC, Dubai-based arm of the Antwerp diamond supplier.Earlier this...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa bought stockpiles of diamonds from the Russian government in a highly unusual bid to replenish dwindling inventory, ahead its current contract sale.A special auction was held last week by Gokhran, the state repository of precious gems and metals. Alrosa bought 70 per cent of the diamonds offered for sale.The miner has been warning of "a long period of supply deficit" in the...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers went back into the black in the first half of the year as sales and production rebounded from the Covid-19 crisis.Underlying earnings at the diamond miner reached $267 million for the six months ending June 30, compared with a loss of $214 million a year earlier, parent company Anglo American reported Thursday. Revenue more than doubled to $2.9 billion versus $1.22 billio...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The world's largest sapphire cluster - weighing 2.5 million carats, or more than half a ton - has been found by workers digging a well at the home of a gem trader in Sri Lanka.The pale blue stone (pictured) has been provisionally valued at $100m, although the quality of the stones inside the cluster is not yet known."The person who was digging the well alerted us about some ra...Read More
RAPAPORT... Petra Diamonds has recovered a 342.92-carat rough diamond from its Cullinan mine in South Africa, it said Wednesday.The white, type IIa stone, which is of "exceptional quality" in terms of both its color and clarity, will likely be offered at the company's upcoming September tender, Petra noted.Petra's revenue jumped 38% to $406.9 million last year, growth the company attributed to its...Read More
RAPAPORT... Kering reported solid jewelry sales during the first half of 2021, led by a recovery in Asia and strong demand for its Qeelin brand.The group's jewelry houses, which also include Boucheron and Pomellato, delivered an "outstanding performance" in all regions and across all channels, Kering reported Tuesday. "Our jewelry houses all posted sharp rebounds, with significant triple-digit inc...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The woman accused of swapping $7.8m of diamonds for worthless pebbles told a court it wasn't her. It was her dead sister.Lulu Lakatos, 60, is accused of posing as a gemologist called Anna in a sophisticated heist at the jeweler Boodles (pictured) in Mayfair, London.But she told a court it was her younger sister Liliana who had been involved in the crime in March 2016.&nb...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers today said it sold $510m (provisional) of rough at Sight 6, as demand remained high, especially from the US and China.The figure is more than four times the $116m total for last July, in the depths of the pandemic, but more significantly it is more than double the $250m figure for pre-Covid July 2019.De Beers said it was still offering extra flexibility to sight holders, a...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers' sales momentum continued in July as demand strengthened and rough prices grew.Proceeds came to $510 million for the month, compared with $116 million a year earlier, the company reported Wednesday. The total was 7% more than in June and the highest since February."Our sixth sales cycle of the year has seen the continuation of good demand for rough diamonds, driven by str...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A diamond ring owned by the legendary Sammy Davis Jr sold for $69,000, way above its high estimate of $40,000 at Bonhams' California.The octagonal-shaped modified brilliant-cut diamond (pictured) was GIA-certified as 6.28-carats, K-color and VS1-clarity.Another piece that belonged to the flamboyant performer, an 18-karat gold, 10.75-carat fancy brown diamond and diamond ring,...Read More
(IDEX) - Tiffany & Co is suffering a backlash over its new ad campaign - condemned on social media as disgusting, disrespectful and ageist.Posters of grungy young women with attitude (pictured), headlined Not your mother's Tiffany, have appeared by roadsides in Los Angeles, USA.It follows the on-off-on-again $16.2bn buyout by luxury conglomerate LVMH and the appointment of 29-year-o...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Coronavirus has caused global devastation, but for a diamond industry that was in turmoil, it may prove to have been a blessing in disguise.It has emerged from the depths of pandemic lockdowns and is now in position that was "unimaginable 12 months ago," say experts Pranay Narvekar and Chaim Even Zohar in IDEX's new state of the industry analysis - Pipeline 2020 - which is ava...Read More
RAPAPORT... LVMH saw sales of watches and jewelry triple in the first half of 2021, boosted by its Bulgari brand, the acquisition of Tiffany & Co., and a strong rebound in demand.Revenues in the category jumped to EUR 4.02 billion ($4.74 billion) in the six months ending June 30, compared to EUR 1.32 billion ($1.55 billion) a year ago. LVMH reported Monday. Sales for the segment also beat pre-...Read More
RAPAPORT... Some 143 US jewelry businesses shut their doors in the second quarter of 2021, 53 more than the same period last year, according to data from the Jewelers Board of Trade (JBT).In total, the sector downsized 1.8% year on year to 24,021 companies active during the three months, the JBT said Monday.Of the businesses that discontinued operations in the second quarter, two firms went bankru...Read More