(IDEX Online) - Diamond trading halls in Antwerp, Belgium, and Ramat Gan, Israel, have closed because of coronavirus restrictions.Trading halls at The Israel Diamond Exchange, with 15,000 employees, are subject to new rules announced on Saturday against gatherings of more than 10 people.Restaurants, the gym, and smoking rooms at the secure complex, known as The Bursa, will also close, although the...Read More
RAPAPORT... All diamond trading halls in Belgium and Israel are closing until further notice as the countries attempt to stem the spread of the coronavirus.Antwerp's four bourses will shut their trading floors from Monday, the Antwerpsche Diamantkring, the city's rough-diamond exchange, said in an email to members Friday. The rough and polished trading halls of the Israel Diamond Exchange (ID...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gemological Science International (GSI) has launched a new grading report for synthetic diamonds that states whether a stone has been through post-growth treatment, claiming to be the first major laboratory to offer this.The LGX Complete certificate will specify whether the stone was created using High Pressure-High Temperature (HPHT) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD), GSI said l...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A diamond merchant has been locked in an 11-year battle to recover uncut gems seized at a Canadian border post, according to the daily National Post newspaper.Tamba Thomas, from Australia, was found to have a plastic bag containing 28.13 carats of "forgotten" rough diamonds in his backpack as he crossed from the USA to Canada at Lacolle, Quebec, in November 2009.He had Kimberley pa...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has appointed Sriram Natarajan as managing director of its India lab, to succeed Nirupa Bhatt.Natarajan, who joined the GIA in 2017 as vice president of laboratory operations, will report to GIA India's board of directors. He will assume the position on June 15, once Bhatt transitions to her new role as a consultant on GIA's Diamond Origin Rep...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The Royal Canadian Mint has produced the world's first diamond-shaped coin.It has a face value of CA$50, but is being sold to collectors for CA$1,499.95 in a limited edition of 700.The "coin" is made from 3oz of pure, matte-finished silver set with a 0.20-carat square-cut Forevermark Black Label diamond, mined at the Victor Mine, in Northern Ontario, before it closed in 2019.I...Read More
RAPAPORT... Firestone Diamonds' shareholders have approved its delisting from public trading, as it seeks to reduce costs amid weak market conditions.The company, which operates the Liqhobong mine in Lesotho, will remain on AIM - the London Stock Exchange's submarket for smaller companies - until close of business on March 25, and will officially delist the following day, it said last week. I...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa is allowing clients to defer up to 60% of their rough-diamond allocations at this month's contract sale, claiming the concession will help buyers handle the current market difficulties."Amid such market uncertainty, it wouldn't be right to keep our customers tied to their original contracts," Evgeny Agureev, the Russian miner's deputy CEO, said in a statement Thursday. "We...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) will introduce a certification project for Guinea's artisanal miners that will identify their rough diamonds as conflict-free.The AWDC has based the program on the Maendeleo Diamond Standards (MDS) that Canadian trade organization Diamond Development Initiative (DDI) implemented among Sierra Leone's small-scale miners in April. AWDC worked w...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gemological Science International (GSI) has launched a new grading report for synthetic diamonds that states whether a stone has been through post-growth treatment, claiming to be the first major laboratory to offer this.The LGX Complete certificate will specify whether the stone was created using High Pressure-High Temperature (HPHT) or chemical vapor deposition (CVD), GSI said l...Read More
Angola has launched a limited public tender to contract three independent diamond evaluators to evaluate the some 9.2-million carats of rough diamonds produced in the country each year. The contracts would fall under government’s services provision regime. The tender is open to both Angolan and foreign bidders, but proposals must be submitted in Portuguese. To win, the bidders will have to h...Read More
(IDEX Online) - BRITS spend an average of $1,876 on an engagement ring, a new survey reveals.That's a fraction of the estimated the $44,000 that prime minister Boris Johnson is said to have spent on a three-carat squarish emerald, surrounded by two carats of diamonds for fiancee Carrie Symonds.Half of the Brits quizzed in a poll for loans firm Hitachi Personal Finance said they'd be happ...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Gem Diamonds announced a sharp fall in profits for 2019 as it recovered fewer carats and sold them at lower prices.???,?AE'Profit from continuing operations were $15.0m, down dramatically from $52.4m the previous year.Revenue and underlying earnings at its Letseng mine, in Lesotho, were also down.Average value per carat sold was $1,637, compared with $2,131 in 2018.Key financial re...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds' profit dropped last year amid lower large-stone recoveries and a drop in the average price.Profit for the year fell 77% to $10.6 million, compared with $46.6 million the previous year, the miner said Wednesday. Revenue fell 32% to $182 million, as sales volume declined 11% to 111,292 carats. The average price slid 23% to $1,637 per carat, reflecting the smaller percentage...Read More
RAPAPORT... Stargems, a specialist in sourcing rough diamonds, has partnered with distributor A.A. Rachminov on a manufacturing and marketing program for South African diamonds.The companies will jointly procure and cut the goods, using Stargems' sourcing experience and A.A. Rachminov's expertise in polishing and marketing. Most of the manufacturing will take place at Stargems' cutting facili...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sarine Technologies has launched a new platform enabling manufacturers to tap its automated grading systems and issue a report in-house to support the needs of jewelers.The company this week introduced its eGrading innovation via a video campaign on YouTube claiming the concept would "change diamond grading forever." It allows manufacturers to self-execute third-party grading of the 4C...Read More
RAPAPORT... Israel's diamond regulator has granted temporary concessions to promote shipments to and from countries affected by the coronavirus, after exports slumped in February.Dealers can now spend 90 days inspecting polished goods from certain virus-hit countries without paying import duty, instead of the usual 30 days, diamond controller Ophir Gore said in a letter to Israel Diamond Exch...Read More
Market quiet, with very few customers visiting from overseas due to virus. Some traders took vacation over Holi festival. Polished suppliers under pressure as inventories rise and prices soften. Demand down for SI-clarity and better diamonds. Some interest in I1 among local jewelers. Manufacturers have reduced polished production in response to the decline in orders. High gold prices and rupee dep...Read More
Diamond industry facing severe liquidity crisis as coronavirus spreads to US. Suppliers uncertain about prices as buyers push for deeper discounts. Jewelers holding large inventory and have scaled back polished purchases. Manufacturers are advised to stop buying rough and hold cash until conditions stabilize. Slump in oil price (-32% since Mar. 5) and stock market (Dow -10%) reducing consumer weal...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair went ahead despite coronavirus fears, although visitor numbers were down sharply from 14,000 last February to under 10,000.It was the only gems and jewelry trade show to take place in Asia so far this year, following a number of high-profile cancellations including the Hong Kong's International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show and International...Read More