(IDEX Online) - The pearl necklace worn by Audrey Hepburn in the 1953 movie Roman Holiday has been pulled from auction, without explanation, by Christie's Geneva.It follows another unexplained withdrawal, that of the Blue Lagoon tourmaline (estimate $1.44m to $2.44m) from a Sotheby's Geneva auction earlier this month.The Hepburn choker-style pearl necklace, set with cabochon sapphires, w...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sanctions on Russian diamonds will lead to a supply shortage, and a price collapse, according to the country's deputy finance minister Alexei Moiseev.That in turn will accelerate the rise of lab growns, he said.The G7 nations, representing 70 per cent of world diamond sales, are poised to implement a boycott on Russian diamonds, which still account for around $4bn of rough sal...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucapa today (20 November) said it was pausing plans to revive the Merlin mine in Australia, amid the ongoing decline in diamond prices.The Perth-based miner bought the mothballed deposit (pictured), in a remote part of Northern Territory, Australia, for $6m in December 2021.At the time it estimated annual production at 153,000 carats, generating a total projected revenue of $1.14b...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers and the Botswana government will work together to find more diamond deposits, after both sides agreed a 10-year deal in June."Most of our mines are ageing, and therefore, we need to look beyond Botswana if we want to continue generating wealth for this country," said Lefoko Maxwell Moagi, Botswana's minister of minerals and energy.He was speaking at the annual Natural...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Jewelry salespeople in the US are being warned of a surge in out-of-store attacks, on the road, at gas stations and in parking lots.Four gang members armed with a crowbar and a hammer, deliberately crashed into a car on the I 10 freeway in Los Angeles and stole merchandise while the victim, a dealer from Hong Kong, kneeled with his hands in the air.The Jewelers' Security Allia...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's voluntary ban on rough imports has yet to have an impact, with month-on-month purchases for October dropping by less than 1.4 per cent.The two-month moratorium, aimed at stabilizing prices, was brought in by the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) and other industry bodies.Imports for October were $1.019bn, GJEPC said in response to an IDEX Online inqui...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's polished diamond exports for October were down 25 per cent on September, and down 33 per cent on the same month last year, according to the latest figures from the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). But there is no monthly breakdown of rough imports to indicate how much manufacturers are abiding by a voluntary two-month ban which started on 15 O...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Brilliant Earth, the US-based "ethical jeweler", saw a slight rise in its Q3 sales but a significant drop in net income as is battled ongoing "industry headwinds".Net sales were up 2.5 per cent year on year to $114.2m, but net income was down 65 per cent to $2m, the company said in its Third Quarter 2023 Results. Gross profit increased 9.7 per cent to $66.8m due to a 17 per cent in...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Residents of a picturesque Spanish town are protesting over Diamond Foundry plans to install 40-metre high towers to power the $850m lab grown factory it is building there.They are largely in support of the factory itself, which will create 300 jobs and ultimately produce 10m carats a year of single-crystal diamond chips, as well as traditional gem quality diamonds.But they oppose...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Earrings featuring a pair of exceptionally large fancy vivid orange-yellow diamonds, weighing 12.20 carats and 11.96 carats are to be sold at Christie's New York.The California Sunset Diamonds carry an estimate of $7m to $12m. Both stones are oval mixed-cut and natural color. The larger of the two is VVS2 clarity, the smaller is VS1.Each earring has an additional two white dia...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers rough diamond sales crashed to just $80m during cycle 9 as demand virtually evaporated.That's the lowest figure since it started reporting Sight totals in 2016, down 60 per cent on cycle 8 and down 82 per cent on cycle 9 last year.Al Cook, De Beers CEO, said: "Macro-economic challenges continue to affect the diamond sector. The retail recovery in China remains slow.&n...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The UAE has taken over chairmanship of Kimberley Process (KP) for a second time, promising "a year of delivery", despite a chaotic plenary in Zimbabwe that ended last week without the usual end-of-session communique."Our work in the Kimberley Process holds greater significance than ever before," said Ahmed Bin Sulayem, executive chairman and CEO of Dubai Multi Commodities Center (D...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Hammer-wielding thieves threatened security staff during a raid on a diamond store in Canada.Security guards converged on White Carat Co. Diamonds, at the Bramalea City Centre shopping mall, in Brampton, Ontario, after reports of display cases being smashed.One of the three masked raiders climbed onto a counter and appeared ready to swing a hammer at the guards, in surveillance vid...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A diamond merchant reported his own 16-year-old son to police in Surat, India, for allegedly stealing polished gems worth over $62,000. According to a report filed to police, the boy stole six packets of polished diamonds, with a total weight of 269 carats. He then sold them for a tiny fraction of their real value, just $300, so he could buy an iPhone. The father, who runs a diamo...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucara says it has revised down its revenue guidance from the Karowe mine, in Botswana, for this year by around a fifth, following the abrupt termination of its sales agreement with HB Antwerp.The Canadian miner is forecasting sales of $160m to $190m, down from $200m to $230m, due to the timing of forthcoming sales of specials over 10.8 carats, which account for around 65 per cent...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Tiffany is launching a limited-edition collection of diamond-accented silver Pokemon characters, priced from $1,290 to $29,000.It's a collaboration with contemporary artist Daniel Arsham, who reimagines everyday objects as archaeological discoveries from an imagined future.The collection features six characters from the Japanese media franchise of video games, animated series...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Mountain Province (MPD) says it will cut costs, suspend the underground expansion of its Gahcho Kue mine in Northwest Territories, Canada, as it announced a Q3 net loss of CAN$13.4m (US$9.7m).The company blamed a downturn during the quarter, with major diamond producers significantly cutting their sales and Indian manufacturers adopting a voluntary two-month ban on rough purchases...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sotheby's Geneva brought in an above-estimate $46.5m from its Magnificent Jewels auction, but withdrew one of its star attractions - a 94-carat Paraiba tourmaline - shortly before the event.Biggest highlight of the 158-lot auction was the Love Stone (pictured), a 103.62-carat fancy intense yellow VS2 cushion modified brilliant-cut diamond that sold for $2.48m.But the Blue Lago...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The week-long Kimberley Process plenary in Zimbabwe ended in conflict and chaos yesterday (Saturday 11 November), primarily over Russia's use of diamond revenue to fund its war in Ukraine. KP Civil Society Coalition (KPCSC) the observer group of mostly African diamond-producing countries, walked out of talks that dragged on until 2am, saying it had lost confidence in the discu...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A white glove sale of Viennese imperial and royal jewelry that was rediscovered earlier this year in a German bank safe sold for a total of $10.7m at Sotheby's Geneva.All 207 lots were sold, achieving more than three times the overall pre-sale low estimate.Sotheby's described the collection as extraordinary, "spanning two centuries of European history charting the fates,...Read More