(IDEX Online) - Swiss watchmakers may have to produce more subdued designs as a result of sanctions on Russia, a key supplier of diamonds, gold, platinum and other precious metals.Jon Cox, an industry analyst with the Kepler Cheuvreux financial services company, said concerns over raw materials would inevitably drive up prices."I imagine product development will move to more subdued luxury goods",...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra could axe 150 miners' jobs at its Koffiefontein mine, in South Africa, say union leaders.The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) says it is "deeply angered" by the move.Mosepedi Sanane, regional secretary for the Kimberley area, said: "We believe there are other avenues that could have been looked at before going through this process which are going to see our members an...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly firmer on the morning of Tuesday April 5, but trading was light with China on holiday.* Market now focused on the next round of sanctions against Russia and whether they will include a ban on importing Russian oil* Firmer metals prices underpinned by higher energy prices and concerns about shortagesBase metalsThree-month base metals price...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 11 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of the February U.S. Trade Deficit at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was $88.50 billion versus $89.70 billion in January. Actual was $89.20 billion.The Canadian Dollar was virtually unchanged at US80.35 cents following release of Canada's...Read More
RAPAPORT... Two more luxury brands have curtailed their involvement in the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) as the fallout from the Russia-Ukraine war continues.Bulgari stepped down from the organization's board last week, parent company LVMH said Monday in an email to Rapaport News. The Italian jeweler - which represents LVMH and its other brands at the RJC - will remain a member of the s...Read More
RAPAPORT... Christie's is set to offer 128 Patek Philippe watches from a private collector in three sales across the globe.The assortment, called the Kairos Collection, is the finest group of contemporary timepieces by the designer ever to come to auction, Christie's said last week. The watches were acquired over 35 years.The auction house will feature 30 pieces in the first part of its May 9 Gene...Read More
RAPAPORT... An early 20th-century ruby and diamond ring garnered nearly eight times its high estimate following a bidding war at a recent Fellows auction.The piece, which featured an unheated 2.20-carat Burmese ruby and 0.65 carats of old-cut diamonds, fetched GBP 19,140 ($25,265) at the March 31 jewelry sale, smashing its upper presale estimate of GBP 2,500 ($3,300). The final price is one of the...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The planet Mercury could be awash with diamonds, say experts.Their research suggests its heavily-cratered surface could be home to 16 quadrillion tons of diamonds.A quadrillion is a million billion - or one followed by 15 zeros. And that measurement is in tons, not carats.The research was presented at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference (LPSC) in Houston, Texas, USA. Ke...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa has quit the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC).The move came days after the RJC's own executive director resigned in frustration that the miner - a third owned by the Russian government - had been allowed to remain as a member.Alrosa stood down as vice chair of the London-based watchdog shortly after Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February, but did not suspend its membe...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Allegations of a $200m rough diamond and foreign exchange scam involving customs officers in Mumbai are being investigated by India's Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the Free Press Journal reports.The Mumbai-based newspaper says the DRI stumbled upon corrupt "hawala" transactions - money transfer without money movement - allegedly carried out with the connivance of...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The IDEX Polished Price Index rose steeply over a couple of days early in March, but declined steadily day by day during the rest of the month. The initial leap outweighed subsequent losses, so the Index closed up 0.54 per cent on the start of the month, setting another decade-high record. But the trend since the 5th of the month has clearly been downwards...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 8 points in pre-opening trade. Twitter advanced $9.49 to $48.80 on news that Elon Musk has acquired a 9.2% interest in the company.Tesla gained $7.51 to $1092.10 after announcing record production in the first quarter. Constellation Brands added $1.29 to $235.00 after the Sands family proposed a switch to a single clas...Read More
RAPAPORT... TAG Heuer has launched a timepiece featuring lab-grown diamonds, describing the move as a "major milestone" for the company and the watch industry.The Swiss watchmaker has placed the manmade stones in the case and the crown of the new TAG Heuer Carrera Plasma, which the LVMH brand unveiled at last week's Watches & Wonders fair in Geneva. It uses stones that Israeli producer Lu...Read More
RAPAPORT... Pandora has appointed Irving Holmes Wong as general manager of its greater China division as part of a push to grow its sales in the region."China is the world's largest jewelry market, and Pandora sees significant growth opportunities," the company said Friday. "As part of its [new] strategy, Pandora has set a long-term target to triple the Chinese business versus 2019 and laid out a...Read More
RAPAPORT... Russian miner Alrosa has suspended its membership in the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), both organizations said in statements Friday.The development came just over a month after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The RJC board of directors voted to accept Alrosa's decision, the standards groups added. Alrosa exited the RJC board in early March, but remained a member of the organi...Read More
RAPAPORT... Hong Kong's hard-luxury market saw sales plunge for the first time in more than a year amid a resurgence of Covid-19 and further government restrictions to stem the spread of the virus. Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and valuable gifts fell 34% year on year to HKD 2.21 billion ($281.8 million) in February, the municipality's Census and Statistics Department reported Thursday. Re...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The diamond industry in Israel is likely to suffer from sanctions on Russia, says Ha'aretz newspaper even though the country has itself remained neutral on the invasion of Ukraine.Precious stones and metals account for about a third of Israel's total imports from Russia, according to the Israel Export Institute, amounting to $524m in 2021.Israel has not imposed restrictio...Read More
(IDEX Online) - An innovative - and extremely pricey - new TAG Heuer watch exploits technical opportunities offered by lab grown diamonds.The $376,000 Carrera Plasma (pictured) incorporates almost 12 carats, including a 2.5-ct gem grown to the shape of the crown.The dial of the 44mm-diameter watch looks like it's been sprinkled with diamonds but has actually been grown as a single polycrystal...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Prices kept rising overall during March, but there were more price drops among both rounds and fancies than we have seen of late.Rounds Price increases again dominated for most sizes, although there were more drops than in recent months. Among 1.50-cts-4.99-cts most goods K+ and SI3+ saw prices rise. There were price rises in 1.00-cts-1.24-cts among J+ and SI1+, but a sm...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 15 points in pre-opening trade. U.S. equity index futures eased slightly following release of the March Employment Report. March Non-farm Payrolls released at 8:30 AM EDT on Friday was expected to increase 486,000 versus an upwardly revised gain of 750,000 in February. Actual was an increase of 431,000.March Unemployme...Read More