RAPAPORT... Stuller, a provider of goods and services for jewelry professionals, has named Guy Borenstein as its senior gemologist.Borenstein has 15 years of gemology experience under his belt, including stints as vice president of gemological services at Gemewizard, and as chief gemologist at the European Gemological Center and at GWLAB laboratories, an independent chain of labs."Guy is a wo...Read More
RAPAPORT... Lucapa Diamond Company has agreed to acquire the Merlin diamond project in Australia for AUD 23 million ($17.8 million), planning to fund the deal with private and public sales of its shares.The acquisition agreement with Merlin Operations complements Lucapa's existing portfolio, the miner said Monday. "This is a strategic acquisition which represents a value-accretive and lo...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Mehul Choksi, the Indian diamantaire facing extradition over an alleged $1.85bn fraud against the Punjab National Bank (PNB) has gone missing on Antigua.Family members are "worried and anxious", says his lawyer, after his car was found - with no sign of him - on the Caribbean island where he currently has citizenship. He was last seen at 5.15pm local time on Sunday 23 May.The...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond manufacturer Shairu Gems says it has become first in India to achieve carbon-neutral status.The Mumbai-based company has been financing emission reduction programs to offset its own carbon emissions.In 2014 the company won international recognition for building the world's first energy-efficient diamond factory (pictured), in Surat.Shairu, a De Beers sight holder with...Read More
RAPAPORT... A necklace made in 1925 by Jean Fouquet will be the flagship item in a selection of vintage jewelry at an online sale by the French unit at Christie's.This piece is expected to fetch up to EUR 450,000 ($551,254) at the June 21 to July 5 sale, which will offer a range of 19th to early 20th century jewelry. The white gold and silver necklace is an example of jewelry influenced by th...Read More
RAPAPORT... Lucapa Diamond Company has agreed to acquire the Merlin diamond project in Australia for AUD 8.5 million ($6.6 million), planning to fund the deal with private and public sales of its shares.The acquisition agreement with Merlin Operations complements Lucapa's existing portfolio, the miner said Monday. "This is a strategic acquisition which represents a value-accretive and lo...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The largest purple-pink diamond ever offered at auction sold yesterday for $29.3m, a record high price but far short of its $38m high estimate.The 15.81-carat type IIa IF diamond (pictured) was named the Sakura Diamond because it perfectly matches the petals of the Sakura cherry blossom.It was the highlight of a Christie's Hong Kong live auction.The previous auction record for...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports reached their highest level in more than two years as manufacturers rushed to meet retail demand. April shipments came to $2.25 billion, compared with $35 million during the onset of the coronavirus pandemic a year earlier. The total was also 37% higher than the same period of 2019, according to recent data from the country's Gem & Jewellery Ex...Read More
RAPAPORT... Watches of Switzerland reported strong sales growth in its fiscal fourth quarter, reflecting both the boost from e-commerce in the UK and an easing of restrictions in the US.Group revenue surged 76% year over year to GBP 218.2 million ($308.9 million) over the 14 weeks ending May 2, the UK-based company said last week. Relative to the fourth quarter of 2019, which excludes the eff...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Sakura ring was the star at Christie's Hong Kong, setting a world-record auction price for a purple-pink diamond.The cushion-cut, 15.81-carat, fancy-vivid, internally flawless stone sold within its estimate for $29.3 million, or $1.9 million per carat, at the May 23 Magnificent Jewels auction, Christie's said Sunday. The piece, purchased by a private Asian buyer, was also the most...Read More
(IDEX Online - The Dubai Diamond Exchange (DDE) could set up its own bank to provide financing for dealers.The move is designed to attract more business to a hub that opened in 2002 and last year saw $25bn of rough diamond transactions. Ahmed Bin Sulayem (pictured), executive chairman and CEO of Dubai Multi-Commodities Centre (DMCC) where the exchange is located, said he recognized the need f...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Police have unearthed the contents of a suitcase containing $2.1m of diamonds and jewelry stolen from a Russian trade fair in July 2018.Colombian national Edgar Alejandro Valero led officers to the treasure, buried in woodland, in the Republic of Tatarstan, in Russia's Volga Federal District last week. He was arrested in Argentina in September 2019 and extradited to Russi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa is to widen its diamond exploration program in Zimbabwe. It has increased its stake from 25 to 35 the number of diamond prospecting special grants it holds in the country.The Russian state-owned miner announced a joint venture in December 2019 with the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) to jointly explore for gems. Alrosa holds 70 per cent, ZCDC holds 30 per c...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A controversial statue of Cecil Rhodes will remain, despite a prolonged campaign, says the governing body of the college he attended at Oxford University. It said it favored removing the monument (pictured), but had concluded such a move would be too difficult in terms of heritage and planning consent, and too expensive. The decision effectively overturns an earlier commitment...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A lab has issued a warning about synthetic rubies after a necklace of 50 sizeable and high quality gems was submitted for analysis.GGTL Laboratories Liechtenstein says the client believed they were genuine and asked them to identify treatments and country of origin. Suspicions were aroused because "none of the inclusion scenarios gave away any possible country of origin, somet...Read More
RAPAPORT... A 12.20-carat, marquise-cut diamond was the top seller at a recent Skinner Auctioneers sale, more than tripling its high estimate.The unmounted, G-color, SI1-clarity diamond fetched $472,000, well above its $150,000 valuation, at the May 18 sale, Skinner said Saturday. The stone came from the descendants of Irene Langhorne Gibson, who is thought to have modeled for her husband, Charles...Read More
RAPAPORT... Jewelry sales at Richemont grew 3% for the full fiscal year as double-digit increases in Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa outweighed a lackluster performance in other regions.Proceeds from the category rose to EUR 7.46 billion ($9.08 billion) for the 12 months ending March 31, Richemont said last week. The increase was driven by solid sales of the company's Cartier, Van Cleef &...Read More
RAPAPORT... Global luxury sales could return to pre-pandemic levels this year, boosted by a strong recovery in China and an unexpected early rebound in the US, according to Bain & Company.In the first quarter of 2021, revenue from luxury products grew up to 1% compared to the same period in 2019, the US management consultancy group said in its Luxury Study 2021 Spring Update. The increase came...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A gem trader is accused of knowingly buying $750,000 of diamonds to help the mafia launder proceeds of a $35m tax fraud.The Swiss citizen, identified only as C, cannot be named because of local reporting restrictions.He's alleged to have bought the diamonds in Israel for three Italian accomplices involved in organized crime who were jailed in 2011 for a VAT scam, according to...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Specialty jewelers have been recovering well after the devastating early months of the pandemic, according to the first figures release by the US Department of Commerce for well over a year. It's the first time we've seen official figures since January 2020. They show sales in the April 2020 crash fell by 78.5 per cent - slightly worse than the 75 per cent estimate...Read More