(IDEX Online) - Christie's say a 45.46-ct round brilliant diamond is the highest value gem ever to be offered in an online-only auction.The Flawless Star (pictured), a D/IF Type IIa stone, carries at estimate of $4m to $6m and is being sold without reserve.The record high price actually paid for a diamond in an online-only sale was set in June 2020 when a 28.86-carat, D-color, emerald-cut dia...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Louis Vuitton has been come under fire online over its new fine jewelry collection - because the LV initials look like Russia's pro-war 'Z' symbol. Thousands of social media have pointed out the similarities between the two.Rapper Kid Cudi and actresses Jin Chen and Alicia Vikander have been photographed with the range of unisex pendants, rings, earrings and bra...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is due to discuss diamond and other trade links with India when he visits the country for the first time.Cut and polished diamonds are India's second-largest export to Israel ($1.1bn) behind processed petroleum products ($1.3bn).Bennett's is due to visit this coming weekend. However he has tested positive for Covid and is not y...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Beyonce served up a fashion grand slam with a pair of tennis ball-colored dresses (one citron, one lime) and almost 400 carats of diamonds at the Oscars.She wore shoulder-length earrings by Lorraine Schwartz, her jeweler of choice, featuring seven rows of diamonds, weighing in at 150 carats.The 40-year-old singer also showed off a pair of 150-carat diamond bangles and two diamond r...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were little changed on the morning of Tuesday March 29, while on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, nickel was down and the rest were firmer – this despite concerns about lockdowns affecting demand.* Despite low volumes and concerns about China’s lockdowns, the base metals generally look upbeat.* LME three-month nickel seems to have found a pri...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 39 points in pre-opening trade. McCormick gained $2.24 to $99.86 after reporting higher than consensus first quarter revenues and earnings. CVS Health dropped $2.24 to $99.86 after Deutsche Bank downgraded the stock from Buy to Hold.Bausch Health added $0.17 to US$22.75 after announcing plans to reduce its debt by anot...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Jewelers' Security Alliance (JSA) appointed three new officers at its most recent event and finalized the reelection of its chair, Steven Kaiser.Kaiser, the CEO of luxury jeweler Kennedy North America, will serve another three-year term, the JSA said last week. Meanwhile, Alan Zimmer, CEO of Reeds Jewelers, was elected as vice chairperson, while Mark Udell, the president of London...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rough resources at Lucapa Diamond Company's Lulo deposit in Angola increased 11% in 2021 as the miner identified new material and improved its knowledge of existing areas, management said Monday.The figure, which refers to the volume of diamonds with a reasonable prospect of being extracted economically, climbed to 151,040 carats as of December 31 from 135,900 carats a year earlie...Read More
Belgium does not Oppose Sanctions on Russian Diamonds, says PM(IDEX Online) - Belgium has not opposed EU sanctions against Russian diamonds, its prime minister told national radio.Alexander De Croo (pictured) was responding to calls within the federal government -from the Flemish Green party Groen and French-speaking socialist party PS among others - to stop the importation of diamonds from Russia...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 2 points in pre-opening trade.Energy equities and related ETFs are expected to open lower after the price of crude oil dropped $5.40 to US$108.50 per barrel in overnight trade. Tesla gained $61.38 to $1,072.00 after the company indicated plans to split its stockApple dropped $2.27 to $172.45 after reportedly cutting it...Read More
RAPAPORT... The UK has placed sanctions on Russian diamond miner Alrosa in an effort to weaken its business and stem the flow of funding to President Vladimir Putin's war on Ukraine."Today's sanctions target key industries supporting Russia's illegal invasion," UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said last week. "These oligarchs, businesses and hired thugs are complicit in the murder of innocent civili...Read More
RAPAPORT... Tiffany & Co. has become the latest jeweler to nix the use of Russian-origin diamonds in any of its products following US government sanctions.The announcement comes after a March 11 executive order by President Joe Biden preventing the import of Russian diamonds into the US, in response to Russia's February 24 invasion of Ukraine. Although shipments of diamonds directly from the c...Read More
RAPAPORT... Christie's will offer a 228.31-carat diamond that could fetch up to $30 million at its upcoming Geneva sale.The pear-shaped, G-color, VS1-clarity stone, called The Rock, is the largest white diamond ever to appear at auction, Christie's said Friday. The previous record for a white diamond was set by a 163.41-carat stone the auction house sold in Geneva for $33.7 million in 2017, Christ...Read More
RAPAPORT... Rough prices have fallen substantially on the open market amid a correction following months of heightened activity, dealers told Rapaport News.Buyers had stocked up on goods in anticipation of further price increases, while rising rough valuations had resulted in thin manufacturing margins, traders explained. Russia's war in Ukraine has also prompted buyers to hold back.Prices on...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A third of US jewelry buyers say cremation diamonds are "gross and weird". But just over a fifth (22 per cent) said they'd consider buying one, according to research for Heart In Diamond.The UK-based company produces lab grown diamonds from the hair or cremated remains of people and pets."Turning diamonds into ashes is something of a taboo subject and because of this, few...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Tiffany & Co says it has stopped sourcing diamonds mined in Russia, which are said to account for a third of its general supply.It's the second major US jeweler to implement a boycott on newly-mined stones from Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine. Signet said last week it would not accept precious metals of diamonds from Russia, even if suppliers were not su...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A white diamond described as the largest ever to appear at auction could sell for $30m.The 228.31-ct pear-shaped gem will lead Christie's Magnificent Jewels sale in Geneva.The G/VS1 stone, named The Rock (pictured), was mined and polished in South Africa over 20 years ago. It has an estimate of $20m to $30m.The previous auction record for the largest white diamond was a 163.41...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Russia has reportedly seized millions of dollars worth of Audemars Piguet watches in response to a Swiss ban on the sale of timepieces and other luxury goods.Agents from the FSB security service took the from the firm's Moscow premises, claiming there had been customs irregularities, according to the Swiss newspaper NZZ am Sonntag.But Swiss foreign affairs department officials...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were upbeat on the morning of Friday March 25, although those trading on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gave a mixed performance as prices followed the pullbacks seen on the LME on Thursday.Nickel on both exchanges remains the exception; the metal is still trading its own agenda while it adjusts to recent turmoil.Flash manufacturing purchasing manager...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 16 points in pre-opening trade. Darden Restaurants slipped $0.26 to $132.14 after the company lowered 2022 guidance. Cannabis equities and related Exchange Traded Funds are expected to open higher on news that the U.S. House of Representative is planning to vote on legalization of cannabis use. Alaska Airlines added $1...Read More