(IDEX Online) - The family-owned Swarovski crystal jewelry empire is reportedly in turmoil as it faces plunging profits and the prospect of wholesale job losses. Robert Buchbauer, recently-appointed CEO and great-great grandson of the company's founder Daniel, wants to shed 6,000 staff, shut 750 stores and take the brand upmarket, according to the AFP press agency. But other family members ar...Read More
RAPAPORT... Angola state diamond trader Sodiam has received interest from a number of major tender houses and other providers wishing to establish service centers in the country's new diamond exchange.The Angolan Diamond Bourse (ADB), due to be operational by the end of 2021, will consider offers from tender houses Bonas Couzyn, based in Antwerp; South Africa-based First Element; UK-headquartered...Read More
RAPAPORT... The pandemic has altered how US consumers shop for engagement rings, rather than having a major impact on the amounts they spent, according a survey by wedding resource The Knot.Proposers made greater use of online tools during Covid-19, for example, by spending time researching rings on the internet or connecting with jewelers on social media, the organization said Thursday in it...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rio Tinto achieved record value at its 2020 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender, with bidders raising their offers for the stones following the mine's closure.There were 62 pink, red, blue and violet stones up for sale, weighing a total 57.23 carats. It allowed participants to view the goods using livestreaming and a virtual portal at locations in Antwerp, Singapore and Perth, Austra...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rio Tinto achieved record value at its 2020 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender, after bidders raised prices for the rare stones as supply has come to an end.The company offered 62 pink, red, blue and violet stones, weighing a total 57.23 carats. It allowed participants to view the goods using livestreaming and a virtual portal at locations in Antwerp, Singapore and Perth, Australia,...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A brother of fugitive billionaire Nirav Modi has been charged in the USA with a $1.4m diamond fraud.Nehal Modi, a Belgian citizen, is accused of "grand larceny in the first degree" for allegedly obtaining gems by fraud from the wholesaler LLD Diamonds USA, in Manhattan, New York, in 2015. He has been indicted by the New York Supreme Court.He allegedly claimed the diamonds would be...Read More
Positive sentiment in final week before Christmas as Covid-19 vaccine receives FDA approval. Holiday season successful for e-commerce businesses. Online sales now slowing as delivery deadlines approach. US Nov. retail sales -1.1% vs. previous month after boost from early holiday shopping in Oct. Chinese demand driving polished market ahead of Feb. 12 lunar festival. Dealers anticipate good invento...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The Dubai Diamond Exchange sold $87.5m of gems at the UAE's largest ever rough tender.More than 250 companies took part, with delegates flying in from India, Hong Kong, Russia, Belgium and Lebanon, as well as Israel, now that links have been "normalized".Organizers said the record-breaking tender testament to strength of Dubai's diamond ecosystem and confidence boost for...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers sold $440m of rough in December, indicating a sustained recovery in consumer demand.It's the fourth consecutive month in which 2020 Sights have matched or surpassed their 2019 equivalents.De Beers welcomed the steady demand for its goods, but cautioned that the ongoing pandemic still posed a threat. The miner started offering discounts and extra flexibility to Si...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Staff at some Pandora at some franchises in Australia and New Zealand were told not to call in sick over the three-week Christmas period.Boss Joseph Howley (pictured in screengrab) told them in a video message that it was going to be "very busy" and they shouldn't call in sick or cancel shifts."You are very important to this business," he tells employees of The Howley Group, w...Read More
RAPAPORT... US retail sales struck a disappointing note in November due to an uptick in coronavirus cases and the lack of a second government stimulus package.Revenues fell 1.1% month on month to $546.5 billion, though they were still 4.1% higher than in November 2019, the US Census Bureau reported Wednesday."Consumers held back on spending in November as virus rates spiked, states imposed re...Read More
RAPAPORT... Mountain Province reported strong sales during the fourth quarter, noting that rough prices surpassed pre-Covid-19 levels in most categories.Revenue for the final three months of the year reached $61.7 million, the Canada-based mining company said Thursday. That represented an increase of 25% compared to the same period a year earlier. Sales volume grew 24% to 956,348 carats, while the...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers' rough sales rose in December, albeit at a slower rate than in previous months, as steady retail demand ahead of the holidays supported trading at the rough and polished levels.The final sales cycle of the year brought in $440 million, up 3% from the $426 million the miner recorded a year earlier, it reported Thursday. However, the figure was 5% lower than the November cy...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) will present Jewelers' Security Alliance (JSA) president John J. Kennedy with the 2021 Stanley Schechter Award.The accolade, which was established in 2002, recognizes industry leaders who have raised the jewelry community's reputation through their dedication, ethics and integrity. Kennedy is a former assistant commissioner and deputy general coun...Read More
RAPAPORT... This year could tie as the busiest on record for US retail imports, as consumer demand during the holiday shopping period led to a surge in shipments, the National Retail Federation (NRF) said.Imports for the full year are expected to reach 21.8 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU), up 1% over 2019, despite predictions as recently as last month that 2020 would see a 3% decrease,...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Antwerp's export of rough and polished diamonds fell again in November after both hitting a 2020 peak in September.Rough exports were $725m, down from $957m in October. Year-on-year this was a marked decline, down almost 15 per cent, after a sharp rise of 75 per cent last month.Polished exports fell by nine per cent in November to $612m, according to newly-released figures fro...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers reportedly increased rough prices by up to three per cent at its last Sight of the year in the firmest indication so far that demand is recovering from the pandemic.Insiders say it's the first time since COVID-19 that De Beers has put prices up, after offering discounts and unprecedented flexibilities to Sight holders since August.Yields from the 10th Sight of the yea...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucapa has announced the recovery of an exceptional 101-carat diamond at its Mothae mine, in Lesotho.The Type IIa stone has been measured as D color and is the fourth +100 carat diamond recovered from the southern lobe of the mine's kimberlite pipe since operations started in January 2019.The Australian miner, which partners with the Lesotho government, said it looked forward...Read More
RAPAPORT... Grib Diamonds registered sales of $35 million at its final tender of the year as rough prices rose amid robust demand for larger goods.Prices at the December 11 sale increased around 5% compared with the company's previous tender on October 25, Grib head of sales Antony Dear told Rapaport News Wednesday. A total of 450,000 carats sold, with rough weighing 2 carats and higher most...Read More
RAPAPORT... Phillips garnered $27.6 million from its flagship New York watch auction, led by Paul Newman's Rolex "Big Red" Daytona, which sold for $5.5 million.The price for the timepiece, purchased by an anonymous private collector, is the third-highest ever paid for a Rolex watch at auction, Phillips said last week. The December 12 auction, named Racing Pulse, also saw a record price for any Tag...Read More