(IDEX Online) - Alrosa says it expects to pay shareholders a dividend for the first half of 2023, as long as the diamond market remains stable.It marks a change in fortunes for the Russian state-controlled miner, which last paid a dividend at the end of 2021.Aisen Nikolaev, head of Yakutia, the republic where Alrosa is based, told the Interfax news agency: "We agreed with the country's govern...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Five men have been arrested in New York after an armed gang posing as construction workers stole an estimated $2m of diamonds in two heists.The suspects, most aged in their 60s, are reported to have links with the Lucchese and Gambino families that dominate organized crime in the city.Among the items stolen was a 73-carat necklace, a six-carat ring, and a 17-carat pair of earrings....Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 12 points at 8:30 AM EDTTSX Capped REIT iShares moved below Cdn$16.20 yesterday extending an intermediate downtrend. Intel gained $0.18 to $36.55 after announcing a $33 billion plan to build two plants in Germany. PayPal added $1.07 to $67.50 after announcing plans to increase its share buyback program from $4 billion...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond dealers from Surat are routinely flying to Sierra Leone, buying uncertified rough diamonds from artisanal mines and smuggling them home, according to an investigation by The Blunt Times.Many of the stones are reportedly stolen by workers and sold for dollars at "throwaway" prices.One diamond dealer, who said he was a frequent visitor, told the Surat-based news website: "We...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa says it may diversify into mineral resources beyond diamonds in response to "the new geopolitical environment". Pavel Marinychev, new CEO of Russia's state-controlled miner told the Interfax news agency that rough diamond sales were under pressure.So while the company was working to preserve current channels, it was also seeking to establish new ones to secure its...Read More
(IDEX Online) - An Indian national was arrested after a flight to Indonesia after he was found with diamonds worth $100,000 sewn into his underpants.Customs officers at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, in Jakarta, arrested the 25-year-old man (on 14 June) after spotting "a notable nudge in the bottom half of his wardrobe".They found that pouches stitched into his underpants contained plastic...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Three diamond workers have taken their own lives in Surat within a week because of the industry slowdown, according to news reports.The Indian Express says the most recent was Paresh Mahadik, 40, a diamond polisher for 15 years who lost his job two months ago.Another diamond polisher, Veenu Moradiya, 53, and his family - wife Shardaben, 50, and children Krish, 20, and Senita, 15 -...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A British gin company is giving away diamonds to customers who buy a bottle with a lucky cork.Whitley Neill says it wants to "reignite the age-old tradition of handing down heirlooms".It's doing so by presenting winners with what it describes as "lab-created round cut diamond of D, E, F or G clarity with a minimum carat size of 0.4 mm".The 15 prizes have a combined value of $3...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lightbox, the De Beers lab grown division, is expanding into the bridal market, with a range of 16 engagement rings.It's a significant step for a company that launched in May 2018, saying it would supply "high-quality, fashion jewelry" for "less serious occasions".Lightbox has clearly changed direction and has launched its first range of engagement rings with the tag line "Bec...Read More
Editor's Note: With U.S. equity markets closed on Monday for Juneteenth; Tech Talk next will appear on Tuesday June 20th. See you then! Pre-opening Comments for Friday June 16th U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P b500 futures were up 10 points at 8:30 AM EDT.Adobe advanced...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India suffered yet another decline in gross exports of polished diamonds in May, but it was less severe than in recent months.Foreign sales amounted to $1.72bn, down 17.5 per cent on the previous month, according to new figures from GJEPC (Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council).In April the year-on-year dollar decline was 38.9 per cent, and in March it was 33 per cent. The dec...Read More
(IDEX Online) - More than 18,000 visitors and 12,000 exhibitor and sponsors attended JCK Vegas earlier this month, say organizers. The visitor figures were up eight per cent on 2022, the first post-Covid show, which surpassed pre-pandemic levels. More than 1,900 companies exhibited at the The Venetian and The Venetian Expo for the four-day event which describes itself as "the most important jewel...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Mountain Province Diamonds says it has discovered additional kimberlite at the Gahcho Kue mine, in Canada's Northwest Territories.The Toronto-based miner says a kimberlite exposure was identified during routine mining operations in 2021. Drilling programs the following year indicated a significant volume of previously unknown kimberlite could exist.Ten of 11 drillholes this ye...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 17 points at 8:35 AM EDT.Equity index futures were unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus for May Retail Sales was a drop of 0.1% versus a gain of 0.4% in April. Actual was an increase of 0.3%. Excluding auto sales, consensus for May Retail Sales was an increase of 0.1% versus a gain of...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A diamond worker has been arrested in Surat, India, after he allegedly spiked his colleagues' tea with a sedative and fled with stones valued at $14,000.Police in the Katargam district of the city say the suspect made tea at 4am during a night shift for eight co-workers. Those who were unwilling to drink were forced to do so.He fled the workshop with 2,700 diamonds, with a tot...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa is to build a new $1.5bn mine at Mir, following the 2017 flooding disaster that claimed eight lives.Work will start later this year and the first industrial production is expected in 2030-31, according to the Russian news agency Interfax.Aisen Nikolaev, head of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic, where Alrosa is headquartered, has appraised Russian President Vladimir Putin of the...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A starfish brooch designed by Salvador Dali and featuring cultured pearl of diamonds, rubies, and emeralds sold for $982,000.It was the highest price ever paid at auction for a piece of jewelry by the Spanish surrealist artist.The Etoile de Mer belonged to socialite Rebekah Harkness, who is referenced in Taylor Swift's 2020 song The Last Great American Dynasty.Swift paid $17m...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 8 points at 8:35 AM EDT.Index futures were unchanged following release of the May U.S. Producer Price Index at 8:30 AM EDT. Consensus was a drop of 0.1% versus a gain of 0.2% in April. Actual was a drop of 0.3%. On a year-over-year basis May PPI was expected to increase 1.5% versus a gain of 2.3% in April. Actual was a...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The cost of crime to US jewelers almost doubled last year, says the Jewelers' Security Alliance (JSA).Losses soared to a record high of $129.4m up 84.6 per cent on$70.1m in 2021, according to its 2022 Annual Crime Report.Almost one in five the burglaries recorded were Three Minute Burglaries, so named because that's the time it takes to smash a door or window at night, em...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The sale of Ekati, Canada's first diamond mine, to Australia-based Burgundy is due to be completed by 30 June.It will be the second time the mine has changed hands in under two-and-a-half years. Arctic Canadian Diamond Company acquired the deposit, 125 miles south of the Arctic Circle, in February 2021 after the previous owners, Dominion Diamonds, filed for insolvency.&nb...Read More