RAPAPORT... Sarine Technologies expects the coronavirus pandemic to have a heavy impact on revenue in the second and third quarters amid shutdowns in its major markets. "We cannot yet forecast what our business results will be for the rest of [the second quarter] or the subsequent quarters of 2020," the maker of equipment used in diamond manufacturing said Sunday. "We are assuming that even f...Read More
RAPAPORT... Dominion Diamond Mines has requested an extension to the insolvency protection it was awarded last week, stating that it needs more time to restructure its finances or find new investment.The miner asked the Alberta Court of the Queen's Bench to delay its repayment deadline to June 1, according to a court filing Monday. The original order of protection gave the company - which own...Read More
RAPAPORT... Swarovski has appointed Robert Buchbauer CEO of the family-run business as part of a management reorganization.Buchbauer, who is the great-great grandson of company founder Daniel Swarovski, will retain his role as chairman of the executive board. The restructuring, which was implemented earlier this month, will streamline the crystal brand's various divisions under one entity, Sw...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Christie's sold over $1.3m of jewelry at its latest online auction, with no sign of bidding being dampened by coronavirus.The auction house said the number of unique visitors online had nearly doubled, compared with a similar sale a year ago, and almost 40 per cent of sales were to new customers. Four fifths lots sold above their high estimates.The 12-day sale attracted bidder...Read More
RAPAPORT... The diamond industry will need to tweak its messaging to emphasize the values its product and brands represent, De Beers executives stressed in the Rapaport Diamond Podcast. Rapaport Senior Analyst Avi Krawitz spoke with Stephen Lussier, executive vice president, consumer and brands, at De Beers, and David Prager, the company's executive vice president of corporate affairs, about the i...Read More
RAPAPORT... US imports of polished diamonds slid 26% to $2.43 billion in the first two months of 2020, even before the coronavirus had started to have a major impact on the economy. February imports fell 12% to $1.28 billion. The country has seen a continued slowdown in trading: Every month since August 2019 has recorded polished imports of below $1.5 billion (see graph below).US Trade Data f...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales of rough from Lucapa Diamond Company's Lulo mine fell in the first quarter as the average price dropped amid a weak market.Revenue slid 36% year on year to $7.8 million, the company said Monday. Although sales volume surged to 2,818 carats compared with 451 carats the previous year, the average price plummeted 90% to $2,758 per carat. That was partly due to an unfavorable co...Read More
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Opencast mines are permitted to return in phases to 100% operation from May 1 but underground mines must continue at 50% of production capacity, Trade and Industry Minister Ebrahim Patel said on Saturday.Speaking during a media briefing covered by Mining Weekly on South Africa’s easing from the current Level 5 lockdown stage to Level 4, Patel said: &ld...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The two-man crew of plane that crashed collecting workers for the Ekati diamond mine, in Canada, died because of instrument failure compounded by pilot error, says a report. Pilots Will Hayworth and Zach McKillop came down in their eight-seat Air Tindi King Air 200 in January 2019. "The accident was not survivable," says a newly-released report into the accident by the Transpo...Read More
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – The rapidly evolving Covid-19 crisis learning curve is still too steep to conclusively define what a ‘best practice’ response looks like from the mining industry, says the International Council on Mining and Metals (ICMM), which is facilitating a rapid exchange of information and knowledge to support the responses to the pandemic of its members.I...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A jewelry consultant sold a $16,000 engagement ring while working from home during the coronavirus lockdown. Shenae Comer, a Kay employee from Washington state, spent 90 minutes on the phone with the buyer and was able to discuss details and show him detailed pictures online, before arranging to have it shipped to his home. She's been working from home as part of the company&#...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Indian diamond producers are being urged to adopt a voluntary month-long ban on the import of rough diamonds from 15 May.Trade bodies make the plea in an open letter and say it will help the industry survive the coronavirus crisis and send a clear message to banks that it is not prepared to face further debt.An estimated $7bn of rough and polished diamonds have been stuck in India,...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers will slash diamond production by 20 per cent this year, blaming coronavirus and the resulting Indian lockdown, mine closures in South Africa and US slump in demand.It has revised down its 2020 forecast from between 32m and 34m carats to 25m and 27m carats,In an operational update parent company Anglo American says: "At De Beers, lockdown measures have significantly impacte...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond miners are being allowed to resume operations in Lesotho, even though the country's coronavirus lockdown has been extended. The tiny kingdom, landlocked by South Africa, is home to Gem Diamonds' Letseng mine (pictured), Lucapa's Mothae mine, and Namakwa Diamonds' Kao mine, but Firestone's Liqhobong mine is expected to remain closed f...Read More
RAPAPORT... The National Retail Federation (NRF) is predicting a 1.5% increase in US consumer spending on jewelry this Mother's Day, despite financial pressures arising from COVID-19.Americans will shell out $5.27 billion on the category this year, compared with $5.19 billion in 2019, the trade organization reported last week. Jewelry will retain its position as the top-grossing item for the...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds will recommence full operations at its Let??eng deposit in Lesotho after the government permitted the mining sector to reopen despite a national lockdown.The company will start production on Monday, implementing special health-and-safety measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it said last week. The government reached its decision after weighing up the impact of a...Read More
RAPAPORT... A gem-set, diamond and enamel tutti frutti bracelet by Cartier is to go under the hammer in Sotheby's latest online sale.The piece, which has a high estimate of $800,000, will be sold as a single lot by Sotheby's New York in a dedicated remote auction. It features a selection of old European and single-cut, VS- to SI-clarity, F- to I-color diamonds, weighing a total of approximate...Read More
IDEX has a million diamonds online, more than any other trading portal, according to independent comparisons by the Diamond World website.It emerges as "front-runner" and is singled out for its transparency and objectivity.It also boasts by far the highest number of registered sellers, currently around 2,000.IDEX outperforms five other portals in these key metrics, in a side-by-side analysis...Read More
RAPAPORT... The National Retail Federation (NRF) is predicting a 1.5% increase in US consumer spending on jewelry this Mother's Day, despite financial pressures arising from COVID-19.Americans will shell out $5.27 billion on the category this year, compared with $5.19 billion in 2019, the trade organization reported last week. Jewelry will retain its position as the top-grossing item for the...Read More
RAPAPORT... Christie's garnered $1.4 million from its Jewels Online sale, selling 100% by value.An emerald and diamond necklace from Graff's Icon collection was the top lot, fetching $52,500, against a high estimate of $15,000, the auction house said Friday. The piece contains 71 round diamonds weighing a total of 2.99 carats and 11 pear-shaped, and nine round, emeralds. A pair of emerald and...Read More