(IDEX Online) - De Beers aims to hold Sights outside Botswana until travel restrictions brought in to counter COVID-19 are eased. Its third Sight of the year, in March, was canceled and the fourth, in May, was virtually wiped out by travel restrictions. The next is scheduled for 15 to 19 June in Gabarone, the country's capital. But De Beers is in talks with Botswana's government to relo...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's diamond industry, already reeling from COVID-19, has been dealt another blow, with the introduction of a two per cent online sales tax. The so-called Equalization Levy will be applied to all sales made by any foreign e-commerce operator - including suppliers of rough or polished diamonds - to any resident or business in India. The government is keen...Read More
RAPAPORT... Christie's plans to relaunch its three live Magnificent Jewels sales during July, with the Geneva event set to feature a 100.58-carat diamond.The modified shield mixed-cut, D-color, type IIa diamond will go under the hammer on July 22 with a price estimate of $3.5 million to $4.5 million. Christie's will also hold its New York Magnificent Jewels auction on July 29, it announced Friday....Read More
RAPAPORT... Jewelers of America (JA) has announced the winners of its 30th annual CASE Awards for jewelry design, recognizing retail and supply members whose pieces feature creativity, artistry, style and excellence.This year, JA expanded the prizes to include categories specifically for both retailers and suppliers, it said last week. A panel of judges chose the honorees from a group of more than...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A 12.11-carat blue diamond ring could fetch $12.25m as the highlight of the first live Christie's auction since lockdown.The marquise-cut stone, described as an internally flawless fancy intense blue, will go under the hammer on 9 July at the Magnificent Jewels Auction in Hong Kong, which was postponed from 2 June.Sales have been taking place online since lockdown was introduc...Read More
(IDEX Online) - South Africa's small state-owned diamond miner Alexkor is trading recklessly and will run out of money within a month, a parliamentary committee heard.The company, which operates around Alexander Bay (pictured), on the country's West Coast, is technically insolvent, warned former administrator Lloyd McPatie."I propose as a department that we need to look at liquidati...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Police had to intervene after hundreds of merchants broke social distancing rules by gathering at Varaccha Diamond Market, in Surat. Industry bodies have been urging their members to stay away from Varaccha and the nearby Mahidapura market, where diamonds are traded for export via Mumbai. Authorities in Surat (pictured), the cut-and-polish hub, have allowed factories and workshops...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales at Forevermark's stores in China have recovered strongly since the peak of Covid-19, with customers returning quicker than expected, the De Beers-owned retail brand reported."While much of our world and business is in flux right now, one thing we can be certain of is this pandemic will alter consumer expectations forever, but we can be confident that diamonds will continue t...Read More
Diamond industry reopening and adjusting to new normal as consumers emerge from lockdown. US retail jewelers resuming operations in most states, with emphasis on in-store hygiene, virtual consultations and curbside service. New York trade remains shut. China strengthens security law in Hong Kong, fueling concern about renewed pro-democracy protests and trade war. Polished and rough trading limited...Read More
The Covid-19 crisis is presenting an opportunity for the market to restart, refresh, and build on its experience of dealing with the diamond-trade slowdown of the past few years.RAPAPORT... In these unprecedented times, it would be foolish to make predictions about diamond-jewelry sales growth. We simply won't have any indication about the true state of consumer demand until at least three mo...Read More
RAPAPORT... A fancy-intense blue diamond ring with a high estimate of HKD 95 million ($12.3 million) will go under the hammer at the Magnificent Jewels auction at Christie's in Hong Kong.The marquise-cut, 12.11-carat piece, which is internally flawless, will lead the July 9 sale, Christie's said Wednesday.The Hong Kong auction was originally due to be held June 2, but was postponed amid the c...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa is holding is biggest ever online auction, listing over 800 rough diamonds, as coronavirus restrictions continue. The state-owned Russian miner is providing 3D scans showing each rough diamond's external shape, internal inclusions, anticipated color and fluorescence. It has been holding pilot digital tenders with a small number of stones since October 2019, but has resp...Read More
RAPAPORT... Polished-diamond imports into Hong Kong plummeted 54% to $2.33 billion in the first three months of 2020, reaching their lowest quarterly total since 2009, as the coronavirus hit demand. Polished exports fell 45% to $2.12 billion, according to data from the Diamond Federation of Hong Kong, China. Hong Kong Trade Data for 1Q 2020Read More
(IDEX Online) - Zimbabwe's Murowa Diamonds has blamed erratic power supplies for a fall in output. Owners RioZim said the supply deficit remains a key risk across the group's operations despite a slight improvement in the first quarter of this year. Figures for 2019 show production down seven per cent on the previous year from 740,244 carats to 685,000 carats. The company has invested i...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Pandora has re-opened two-thirds of its 375 North American outlets, using the Waitlist Me app to tell customers when they can enter. The Danish jewelry retail giant will allow no more than five customers in a store at any one time. The app, developed initially for restaurants to tell diners when their table is free, is being used to alert customers when there's a sales associa...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The DELGATTO Diamond Finance Fund (DDFF) today (26 May 2020) launches the diamond industry's first ever online finance platform, on IDEX Online.Dealers who have inventory on the IDEX Online trading platform will be able to click on any individual stone or stones and receive an immediate financing estimate from DELGATTO Diamond Finance Fund.This offers the diamond and jewelry i...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Angola's Catoca mine is cutting production after state-owned miner Endiama revised down its 2020 forecast by 80 per cent. The world's fourth largest mine accounts for three-quarters of the country's annual output. Endiama says total output will be just 2m rather than the 10m carats originally forecast. De Beers and Alrosa, jointly responsible for...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Dominion Diamond Mines is to sell its assets to avoid bankruptcy, recall is furloughed workers and resume operations. The troubled Canadian company, which has been in creditor protection since April, has reached an agreement with The Washington Companies, which will acquire its assets for $126m and assume responsibility for most of operating liabilities. The privately held conglome...Read More
RAPAPORT... Swiss watch exports plunged in April as coronavirus lockdowns brought the entire supply chain to a near halt."Swiss watch exports were extremely low in April as a direct result of the standstill in production, distribution and sales, causing them to collapse," the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry reported Tuesday.Shipments slid 81% to CHF 328.8 million ($339.1 million) for t...Read More
RAPAPORT... US jewelers have restarted business in many states following a more than two-month shutdown to stem the spread of Covid-19.Signet banner Kay Jewelers has opened nearly 120 stores across the country, while business has resumed at about 100 Jared locations. Some of Signet's stores are open to the public, while purchases at others can only be made online and picked up curbside, the compan...Read More