(IDEX Online) - Richemont saw jewelry sales rise by 11 per cent in the last three months of 2022, despite a Covid-related slump in China.Buccellati, Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels drove much of the increase, the company said in an update. Jewelry was its best performing sector.Total revenue across all jewelry brands for the quarter was $4.03bn. Watch sales fell three per cent to $1.04bn...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Eira Thomas, chief executive of Canada-based Lucara Diamonds, says Russian diamonds "should be sanctioned".She told the Financial Times (FT) that, in her personal view, the EU should outlaw its gems when its 27 member countries adopts a new package of sanctions early next month.Belgian imports of Russian diamonds fell to $167m in the three months to the end of September 2022, aroun...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Israel Diamond Exchange is to host its first international events since the Covid pandemic.The inaugural Israel Diamond Conference will take place on March 27, bringing together mining ministers, major diamond producers, finance and banking leaders and other key industry figures. A tender of white and fancy color polished goods, Diagurus, the Israeli branch of the South Africa...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Kim Kardashian has bought the amethyst and diamond pendant famously worn by the late Princess Diana.The American socialite and media personality paid $197,453 for the Attallah Cross after fierce bidding at Sotheby's London yesterday. The estimate was $97,000 to $145,000.The The Fleuree cross, circa 1920, set with square-cut amethyst and accented by circular-cut diamonds belong...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The eight-year-old daughter of a wealthy Indian diamond merchant has relinquished her share of a $61m inheritance, to become a Jain nun.Devanshi Sanghvi took part this week in the 'diksha' ceremony, abandoning all material possessions, after a lavish four-day ceremony in which she rode in a carriage pulled by an elephant.She was heiress to the Sanghvi and Sons jewelry bus...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Priceless jewels have been recovered after the $129m heist at The Green Vault museum, in Dresden, Germany - but many have been damaged.And some of the most valuable items from one of Europe's greatest art collections are still missing.Three of the six defendants being tried for the raid, in November 2019, changed their pleas to guilty on Monday, having returned 31 fragments fr...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucapa says it's delighted with the recovery of two +10.8-carat diamonds from bulk sampling at its Lulo mine, in Angola.The Australian miner says it recovered specials weighing 15.27 carats and 12.37 carats from kimberlite L164, upstream of the Canguige catchment area in the Cacuilo Valley.The total yield was 41 diamonds, with a total weight of 66.05 carats. Among them were 12...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Finance company Delgatto will use Sarine technology to evaluate diamonds in a unique agreement designed to provide more funding for rough purchases.DDFF (Delgatto Diamond Finance Fund) will use Sarine's Galaxy, DiaExpert and Advisor platforms to assess the future value of a stone when it's been cut, and decide whether it's eligible for financing.DDFF will also offer...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds announced yesterday that it had taken the "difficult decision" to put its loss-making Koffiefontein mine, in South Africa, on care and maintenance as it prepares for complete closure.The UK-based miner said it had failed to find a buyer for the underground deposit, which dates back to 1880 and which was expected to reach the end of its life in 2025."Production at Kof...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Exhibitors booked $3.7bn of orders at India's flagship trade show, the IIJS Signature, according to initial estimates by the GJEPC (Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council).Over 20,000 visitors attended the four-day India International Jewellery Show at the Bombay Exhibition Centre, in Mumbai, down on the 32,000 forecast by organizers. All but 800 were from India."The rec...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Rio Tinto has lowered the 2023 production forecast for its Diavik diamond mine, on the edge of Arctic Circle, in Canada. It now expects to produce 3.0m to 3.8m carats, compared with a 2022 forecast of 4.5m to 5.0m carats. Actual production for last year was on target, at 4.7m carats. Rio Tinto, the world's second-largest metals and mining corporation, gave no explanation for t...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds says it's considering "additional financing options to provide support" while its Williamson mine is out of action.It also says it's talking to the government of Tanzania about the sale of a long-disputed diamond parcel that was confiscated in September 2017.A breach of the mine's tailings storage facility last November released 12.8m cubic metres of m...Read More
(IDEX Online) - An Indian national is facing up to 18 years in prison after an X-ray revealed 932 bullet diamonds inside his body.The unnamed 48-year-old, described as an accountant, was apprehended by customs officers at the Ngurah Rai International Airport, on the Indonesian island of Bali.He'd arrived from Bangkok, Thailand, intending to sell the 40.73 carats, said Imran Yusuf, of the loca...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Authorities in Angola seized over 2,000 diamonds, described as being "of several carats" last year, together with illegal mining equipment.They have made repeated efforts to counter diamond trafficking - deporting 250,000 smugglers between 2003 and 2006 - and have faced ongoing allegations over "conflict diamonds".During 2022 defense and security bodies seized 2,028 diamonds and a...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Chinese owners of IGI (International Gemological Institute) are reportedly considering a sale of the network of 20 diamond grading labs, in a move that would value it at $215m.Fosun International Ltd, one of China's first enterprises to develop overseas market, is seeking to shed a total of $11 bn of assets in a move aimed at boosting investor confidence, according to Bloomber...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Poland and Lithuania say they will again push for an end to Belgium's diamond trade with Russia.Diplomats from both countries are demanding tougher EU sanctions against Russia and its ally Belarus as the war in Ukraine approaches its first anniversary."Once again there is an attempt to extend sanctions on the export of Russian diamonds. The value of diamond exports to the Russ...Read More
(IDEX Online) - JCK has announced details of its second show since the Covid pandemic.Organizers say 30,000 industry professionals flocked to Las Vegas last year after the 2020 and 2021 events were canceled.Registration is now open for JCK 2023 at The Venetian Expo and The Venetian from 2 to 5 June."JCK is the place where connections are made, trends are discovered, major industry news is announce...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sarine is set to acquire a majority stake in the New York-based GCAL grading lab for an undisclosed sum.The Israel-based diamond tech company, known for its Galaxy mapping systems, today said both sides had signed a non-binding MOU for an all-cash deal.GCAL (Gem Certification and Assurance Lab), a family business founded in 2001 by Don and Pamela Palmieri, is expecte...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The crown that will used at the coronation of King Charles III has been removed from the Tower of London for the first time in 60 years for "modification work".It was last worn by the late Queen Elizabeth II when she was crowned in 1953.Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the crown had been moved to an undisclosed location, ahead of the coronation on Saturday 6 May, but gave...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Retail gold sales among India's "organized" jewelry retailers will be up by between 23 and 25 per cent in the financial year ending 31 March 2023.But growth in the subsequent 12 months will halve, to between eight and 12 per cent, according to the Mumbai-based Crisil ratings agency.It points to " slower growth in disposable incomes" together with a high base in fiscal 2022.Cri...Read More