(IDEX Online) - Federal prosecutors in the USA have filed documents to seize 35 more diamonds, a number of artworks and sculptures and $2m in cash from Nazem Said Ahmad, alleged financier of the Hezbollah terror group in Lebanon.In April OFAC, the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control blacklisted 52 individuals and entities which, it said, had been supplying cash, precious...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra sold $79.3m of rough this month, after cancelling its last tender because of weak demand.The UK-based miner today said it sold a total of 696,000 carats, including 75,900 carats that were unsold at its May tender, and the 380,000 carats that would have been sold at the cancelled tender in June.Sales in August (Tender 1 FY 2024) were almost double those in May ($42.1m)."The ex...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 17 points at 8:30 AM EDT.Investors are waiting for a statement on FOMC interest rate expectations to be presented today by Federal Reserve Chairman Powell at the Jackson Hole symposium.Affirm added $0.97 to $14.80 after reporting higher than consensus fiscal first quarter results. The company also raised guidance for t...Read More
(Updates prices) By Eric Onstad LONDON, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Copper prices pulled back onThursday after five sessions of gains, as unease surroundinghigh interest rates curbing global growth offset optimism aboutan uptick of demand in top metals consumer China. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) slipped 1.1% to $8,360 a metric ton by 1600 GMT aftertouching its highest since Aug....Read More
(IDEX Online) - The new Surat Diamond Bourse (SDB) has officially been recognized by Guinness World Records as the largest office building in existence."The sprawling complex boasts an incredible 659,611 m ? (7.1 million sq. ft) of floor space, spanning 35 acres of land, surpassing the USA's Pentagon as the world's largest office building," says Guinness in an announcement on Tuesday (22...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Gem Diamonds saw its revenue from rough sales at Letseng, in Lesotho, down 19 per cent to $71.6m in the first half of this year.The UK-based miner blamed the ongoing downturn, fewer recoveries of high-value diamonds, and power outages interrupting ore processing.Letseng, known as the highest dollar per carat kimberlite diamond mine in the world, saw average prices fall 22 per cent...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Jewelry store workers were treated for breathing difficulties and stinging eyes after they were pepper-sprayed during a raid.Police in Philadelphia, USA, are hunting four men who used a sledgehammer to smash display cases at Javier the Jeweler, at the Philadelphia Mills mall.They say the pepper spray used was "highly concentrated" and they evacuated the mall following the att...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 18 points at 8:35 AM EDTU.S. equity indices were unchanged following release of the July Durable Goods Orders report at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was a drop of 4.0% from June versus a gain of 4.7% in June. Actual was a drop of 5.2%.Focus today and tomorrow is on news from the Jackson Hole symposium. Primary topic is on th...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Nirav Modi, the one-time diamond billionaire, now has less than $3 in his company bank account.Firestar Diamond International Pvt. Ltd. (FDIPL) has a balance of just Rs 236 ($2.85) according to a Times of India report, after Kotak Mahindra Bank transferred almost $300,000 to pay income tax debts.Modi, 51, (pictured) is accused of fraudulently using letters of undertaking offered by...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India suffered another steep decline in gross exports of polished diamonds during July, down just over 39 per cent to $1.17bn.Ongoing weak demand had a more severe impact than June, when year-on-year exports slid by 31 per cent. Foreign sales during May appeared to show some recovery with a more moderate fall of 17.5 per cent.Gross imports of rough diamonds were down by 21 per cent...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Gemstone educator Gem-A has issued a warning over "diamond solitaire rings" that are being mailed, apparently randomly, to people in the UK and northern Europe. It's almost certainly a scam, but nobody, least of all Gem-A, is quite sure how it works.The organization, which provides gemology and diamond education in 26 countries but does not sell jewelry, said it was "baff...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 3 points at 8:30 AM EDTThe Canadian Dollar was unchanged at US73.60 cents following release of Canada's June Retail Sales at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was unchanged from May. Actual was an increase of 0.1%.Toll Brothers gained $0.66 to $76.70 after reporting higher than consensus fiscal third quarter earnings. The company...Read More
(Updates prices) By Julian Luk LONDON, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Copper prices rose on Tuesdayfor a fourth session, building on gains last week, buoyed byfirm consumption data in China and more Chinese monetary supportmeasures. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange(LME) was up 1% at $8,360 per metric ton at 1618 GMT."There is a short term uptick in the sentiment today," saidDan Smith...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond mines in Canada's Northwest Territories (NWT) are still operating, as wildfires continue to rage, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of people.Yellowknife, the territories' capital, is home to many of the workers employed at the region's three remote fly in-fly out mines on the edge of the Arctic Circle. Thirty per cent of De Beers workforce at...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucara has announced another huge diamond - a 692.3-ct Type IIa high white gem - just two weeks after the recovery of a 1,080-ct stone.Both are from the Karowe mine, in Botswana, which the Canadian miner has operated since 2012. Lucara says the diamond measure 46.5mm x 40.7mm x 28.4 mm. It is the fourth +300-ct diamond recovered this year and the 20th +100-ct.Earlier thi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Israel's diamond trade suffered another month of severe decline in July, with rough imports down by 46 per cent and exports down by 44 per cent."The global diamond industry is still in crisis," said Ofir Gore, diamond controller at the country's Ministry of Economy and Industry.Net imports of rough diamonds to Israel were $661m for January to July, a decrease of 45 per ce...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 25 points at 8:30 AM EDT.Zoom gained $2.48 to $69.75 after reporting higher than consensus second quarter earnings. The company also raised guidance.Kenvue, a recent spin off from Pfizer, added $0.15 to $23.05 on news that the stock will replace Advanced Auto Parts in the S&P 500 Index.Charles Schwab slipped $0.06...Read More
(Updates prices) By Julian Luk LONDON, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Copper prices climbed onMonday after Reuters reported that China's state banks acted tostabilise a sliding offshore yuan, traders said, butdisappointment with China's latest package of measures to boosteconomic growth capped gains. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange(LME) was up 0.5% at $8,280 per metric ton at 1611 GMT afterth...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Items of jewelry stolen from the British Museum, in London, and worth as much as $63,000 ( ?50,000) each were advertised for sale on eBay for as little as $51 ( ?40).A long-serving curator has been dismissed following an internal investigation, according to the Daily Telegraph newspaper.Pieces of jewelry made of gold, semi-precious stones and glass, some dating back over 3,500 year...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sarine reported a 24 per cent drop in revenue for the first half of this year and an 85 per cent plunge in profit as inflation and interest rates continued to take their toll on the US market.Weak consumer demand had led to a build-up of polished inventory, it said, and a marked drop in the flow of rough into the pipeline. The Israel-based diamond tech company also said the ex...Read More