U.S. equity index futures were lower this morning. S&P 500 futures were down 31 points in pre-opening trade.Index futures responded to civil unrest in China due to increased COVID 19 restrictions. The Shanghai Composite Index dropped 23.14 to 3078.55. In response, Crude oil dropped $2.40 to $73.86 per barrel.Apple $APPL dropped $2.75 to $145.36 after lowering iPhones production expectations fr...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Mountain Province Diamond (MPD) says it has found more kimberlite during explorations at its Kennady North project in Northwest Territories, Canada, on the edge of the Arctic Circle.It's in addition to the kimberlite identified earlier this year, also on land surrounding the Gahcho Kue mine. The two finds are 450 meters apart.MPD said in a statement that the kimberlite was "a...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Fugitive Indian diamond merchant Jatin Mehta has lost his legal challenge against the freezing of his assets, worth $932m, by a British court.The high court in London ruled that the worldwide freezing order (WFO) imposed in May 2022 on Mehta and his family must continue.He is accused of defrauding15 lenders out of more than $1bn lent to his companies Winsome Diamonds and Jewellery...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's government has pledged its support for the country's growing lab grown diamond industry as it aims to reach $5m of annual exports.Piyush Goyal (pictured), minister for commerce and industry, said it was working aggressively to develop both the growing and manufacture.He urged industry leaders in Surat to prepare a vision document and said he would share it with Pr...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 6 points in pre-opening trade. U.S. equity markets close today at 1:00 PM EST.Peoples Bank of China has lowered its lending rate to major Chinese banks by 0.25%.Activision Blizzard dropped $2.59 to $74.00 on reports that the Federal Trade Commission may launch an anti-trust lawsuit against Microsoft's propose acquisiti...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra today announced sales of $61.3m during an extended October tender, in what it described as a "somewhat muted market".Revenue from its Tender 2 FY 2023 were down 40 per cent on Tender 1, in September, though the miner noted that volumes for the second tender cycle are typically lower than the first.Average price per carat fell sharply by 31 per cent from $198 at Tender 1 of FY...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A pink diamond valued at up to $35m has been withdrawn without explanation from auction in New York.The 13.15-carat emerald-cut fancy vivid gem, described as "VVS1 clarity, potentially internally flawless", had been due to lead Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction on 6 December.The auction house confirmed the diamond, belonging to a private collector, had been pulled from the...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Rolex is reportedly planning a $1bn new factory, which would create 2,000 jobs and allow it to crank up production.The company, privately owned by the Hans Wilsdorf Foundation currently produces just over 1m watches a year, but demand always outstrips supply. Rolex had a turnover of almost $8 billion in 2021, according to Morgan Stanley.Acccording to Swiss TV and newspaper rep...Read More
With U.S. equity markets on holidays today, no pre-opening comments are offered. Responses to FOMC Meeting Minutes Minutes were released at 2:00 PM EST yesterdayU.S. equity indices moved higher after 2:00 PM ESTU.S. Dollar and related ETN: UUP moved lower after 2:00 PM ESTLong term U.S. Treasury bond yields moved lower. Long term U.S. Treasury bond prices moved higher after 2:00 PM ESTGold p...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Zimbabwe, new chair of the Kimberley Process, says its diamond sector will grow to $1bn by the end of 2023.Winston Chitando (pictured), the country's mines and mining development minister, says Murowa Diamonds and the ZCDC (Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company) were expanding their operations and would help bring total output to 7m carats, up from 2m in 2018.In an interview w...Read More
(IDEX Online) - UK-based Endeavour Mining says it has discovered "one of the most significant" new gold resources in West Africa.The Tanda-Iguela property, in eastern Cote d'Ivoire, contains an estimated 1.1m ounces.Sebastien de Montessus, the company's CEO, said: "It ranks as one of the most significant discoveries made in West Africa over the last decade and shows potential to be anoth...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A 31.62-carat fancy blue diamond pendant necklace will lead Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction next month, with an estimate of $10m to $15m. The pear modified brilliant stone has been graded by GIA as natural color, VVS1 clarity and potentially Internally Flawless. The color is natural, fancy blue, even. It is set among round diamonds and pink diamonds in platinum and...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 2 points in pre-opening trade.Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of October Durable Goods Orders at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus was an increase of 0.5% versus a gain of 0.4% in September. Actual was an increase of 1.0%. Excluding transportation orders, consensus was an increase of 0.1% versus unchanged...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Nine banks in India have received approval for measures that will allow diamond manufacturers to buy Russia goods in rupees.HDFC Bank and Canara Bank have already opened "vostro accounts" according to the Business Standard newspaper, and seven more are expected to follow.To settle international trade transactions in rupees, a foreign bank can open a vostro account - one that a corr...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamond Foundry, which counts Leonardo DiCaprio among its high-profile backers, has bought a German lab grown company for an undisclosed sum.Augsburg Diamond Technology, also known as Audiatec, makes diamond wafers for jewelry and manufacturing."We had a good feeling about a possible cooperation with Diamond Foundry right from the first talks," said Audiatec's CEO Dr. Stefan G...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's polished diamond exports plunged by more than a quarter (26.1 per cent) in dollars during October amid ongoing weak demand. Total foreign sales for were $1.89bn, according to figures released by the Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), down year-on-year from $2.56bn. The drop was just over 18.7 per cent in rupee. Exports for the six mo...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Richemont saw overall sales rise sharply, by 24 per cent in the six months to the end of September.But the Swiss luxury goods conglomerate, which owns Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Jaeger-leColutre, warned of "volatile times ahead".It reported revenue during the period at $9.9bn, and said operating profit was up 26 per cent to $2.8bn.The results were better than expected, esp...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 13 points in pre-opening trade. The Canadian Dollar was virtually unchanged at US74.60 cents following release of Canada's September Retail Sales report at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus was an decrease of 0.5% versus a gain of 0.7% in September. Actual was a decrease of 0.5%. Dell Computer $DELL advanced $1.83 to $42.90 after...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A British jeweler has created a 15-carat diamond necklace for a dog, with a price tag of almost $600,000.Nathalie Knauf, who runs Knauf Jewels in Soho, London, says it was designed for a client, to complement her necklace and earrings.The silver dog necklace has a total of 91 D-color diamonds, with a total weight of 15 carats, and a para?? -ba tourmaline pear-shaped pendant."It is...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Spending on jewelry in the US fell by almost four per cent in October, compared with the same period last year.That's according to Mastercard SpendingPulse, which measures in-store and online retail sales across all forms of payment.It says the jewelry sector saw a 3.8 per cent drop, second only to all other luxury goods, which saw an 8.7 per cent drop.Across all sectors, excl...Read More