(IDEX Online) - The Biden administration is under pressure to re-impose sanctions on Israeli diamond billionaire Dan Gertler (pictured).He had his US assets frozen in 2017 amid allegations that he'd looted the Democratic Republic of Congo of its copper, cobalt and other mineral resources.Former President Trump quietly, and controversially, granted him a reprieve during his final days in offic...Read More
RAPAPORT... Jewelry sales in the US rose in February, buoyed by January's government-stimulus payments and Valentine's Day gift giving, according to Mastercard SpendingPulse.Sales in the category increased 6% year on year during the "month of love," Mastercard said last week in a data release. E-commerce revenue grew 63%, while spending in all categories climbed 4.6% in total and soared 55% o...Read More
RAPAPORT... Petra Diamonds has sold a 299.3-carat rough stone to Stargems for $12.18 million, after recovering the diamond at its Cullinan mine in South Africa earlier this year.The "exceptional" white, type IIa, gem-quality diamond fetched $40,701 per carat, exceeding the $34,386 per carat Petra achieved for the 424.89-carat Legacy of the Cullinan Diamond Mine in May 2019, the company said F...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Israel's rough diamond exports rose sharply in February, with Dubai accounting for 16 per cent of all foreign sales.Exports fell last year as the global pandemic hit, but were up by 21.9 per cent year-on-year in January and February, according to the Ministry of Economy and Industry.Israel's rough diamond exports were $231m over the two months, compared to $190.3m in the...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Petra Diamonds has announced another high-value sale from the iconic Cullinan mine - a 299.3-carat white, Type IIa gem for $12.18m.It follows the sale last November of the Letlapa Tala collection of blue rough diamonds, also recovered from Cullinan and weighing a total of 85.6 carats to De Beers and Diacore for just over $40m.The "exceptional" new find (pictured) was sold to Starge...Read More
RAPAPORT... The new owners of the Ekati mine are planning production of 4.5 million carats in 2021 after the deposit spent the past 10 months on care and maintenance.Arctic Canadian Diamond Company took over the operation in December as former owner Dominion Diamond Mines filed for bankruptcy protection in April 2020. Dominion was unable to meet its repayment obligations for debts that had swollen...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Sales of jewelry in Hong Kong were depressed again in January, down almost 32 per cent year-on-year. Covid remains a key factor, with new cases hitting a mini-peak towards the end of the month and a two-week quarantine deterring tourists.In addition, the lunar-based Chinese New Year fell later than usual (12 February) which delayed consumer spending from January.Next month...Read More
RAPAPORT... As we look back and take stock of the year that was and gaze longingly at the light at the end of this tunnel we have all been in - together yet physically distanced - there are ripple effects from the Covid-19 pandemic that are now becoming visible. One of the areas where the pandemic has clearly had a regressive effect is the march toward gender equality. Even before this crisis...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Iconic jeweler Harry Winston has been displaying the record-breaking vivid pink diamond named after its founder at its New York store - and says it is accepting sales inquiries.The 18.96-carat rectangular-cut gem became the priciest pink diamond ever sold by auction house Christie's when it went for $50.4im n November 2018. The Pink Legacy Diamond went on display fo...Read More
RAPAPORT... The India International Jewellery Show (IIJS) Signature exhibition will run next month in Mumbai, marking the sector's first large trade fair since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, organizers said.The annual event will take place from April 7 to 12 at the Bombay Exhibition Centre in the Goregaon neighborhood, India's Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) announce...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Year-on-year diamond prices for February were up 1.9 per cent, the biggest monthly increase for over two years. They have been climbing for almost a year now and appear to be finding their level after recovering from the doldrums of the first Covid waves. After the disruption of the early months of the pandemic, the graph has resumed its traditional wave pattern. Monthly prices wer...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sarine Technologies plans to list its shares on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, aiming to widen its access to investors around the world.The move would leave the Israel-based company with two listings, as its stock is already traded on the Singapore Exchange. Both bourses recently allowed companies to float on a second exchange. Sarine, which supplies manufacturing equipment to the d...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India is to host its first major gem and jewelry trade show since the start of the Covid pandemic.Visitors to India International Jewellery Show (IIJS) Signature 2021 in April will only be admitted on production of a recent negative Covid-19 report.The show, expected to attract over 750 exhibitors, signals a return to "business as usual" after a year in which virtually all shows ac...Read More
RAPAPORT... China saw strong growth in platinum-jewelry demand in the fourth quarter of 2020, as the economy began to rebound from the coronavirus pandemic, Platinum Guild International (PGI) reported.Demand for branded collections grew by up to double-digit figures in the country compared to the same period in 2019, the trade organization said last week. Platinum-jewelry manufacturing rose 14% ye...Read More
RAPAPORT... The discussion surrounding conflict diamonds has evolved. Frustrated by the failure of the Kimberley Process (KP) to address today's broader ethical challenges, the trade has developed several programs to compensate. Groups such as the Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) and private entities have systems in place to assure buyers that their diamonds can be fully accounted for, have don...Read More
Market sentiment upbeat. Steady trading levels supported by US demand and gradual return of Chinese buyers. Retailers optimistic amid expectations that Covid-19 vaccine rollout and $1.9 trillion stimulus will boost economy. E-commerce still driving growth. Polished prices stable; 1 ct. RAPI +0.8% in Feb. Manufacturers concerned about tightening profit margins following rough-price hikes in last th...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's gold-jewelry exports to the US have fallen over the past decade and a half following an erosion of the Asian country's preferential trade status, according to a report by industry leaders.Competitors in the Far East, Europe and the Middle East have captured market share from India since 2007, the Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said Tuesday. The shift...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales of jewelry and other luxury items in Hong Kong slid again in January amid a fourth wave of the coronavirus and a later Lunar New Year.Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts fell 32% year on year to HKD 3.37 billion ($434.3 million) during the month, the municipality's Census and Statistics Department reported Wednesday. Sales across all retail categories s...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Almost one in three brides-to-be (32 per cent) were disappointed by their fiance's choice of engagement ring, says a new study. More than one in 10 either said they'd been hoping for a larger diamond or had been hoping for something a little more unusual.Almost half (46 per cent) of the British women surveyed for Hatton Garden jeweler Queensmith said they'd have...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa reported a 49 per cent fall in profits last year as the pandemic hit demand and forced the closure of its less profitable mines.But Q4 showed strong indications of a recovery, with revenue, earnings and profit all significantly up.The Russian state-owned miner saw 2020 profits tumble from $850m to $432m and output was down 22 per cent to 30m carats.It said increased sales in...Read More