The World Diamond Council (WDC) strongly endorses the regional approach taken by the Mano River Union (MRU), in West Africa, to reinforce the effectiveness of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS).The MRU held a three-day workshop in Sierra Leone last week to discuss a programme designed to enhance the implementation of the KPCS.AdvertisementDuring the meeting, WDC executive director E...Read More
(IDEX Online News) - After months of almost straight-line stability, prices of polished diamonds declined markedly throughout February. Prices started at 120.78 and fell steadily day by day (aside from one tiny blip) to close the month at 119.35, a fall of 1.27%.IDEX Online members click here for full report Read More
RAPAPORT... The Women's Jewelry Association (WJA) has launched a new consumer-marketing campaign aimed at empowering women to buy jewelry for themselves.March Is Me Month will coincide with International Women's Day, which takes place on March 8, as well as Women's History Month. The goal of the campaign is to get women to buy themselves a piece of fine jewelry during the month, no matter the...Read More
RAPAPORT... The Women's Jewelry Association (WJA) has launched a new consumer-marketing campaign aimed at empowering women to buy jewelry for themselves.March Is Me Month will coincide with International Women's Day, which takes place on March 8, as well as Women's History Month. The goal of the campaign is to get women to buy themselves a piece of fine jewelry during the month, no matter the...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's diamond exports are expected to drop by a fifth this year, say forecasters. Coronavirus combined with sluggish global demands, have badly hit the second biggest cutting and polishing country in the world. Total diamond exports in the first nine months of the fiscal year were down 18 per cent year-on-year, according to a report published today by Crisil Ratings, the Mum...Read More
Russian miner Alrosa’s investment committee has approved financing for preliminary engineering studies at the Jubilee diamond mine, to provide up-to-date information to decide on the construction of an underground mine.The Jubilee pipe of the Aikhal division is currently being mined by openpit methods.AdvertisementIn 2019, the company considered technical specifications and decided to start...Read More
LONDON – After watching diamond sales plunge in 2019 as a crisis engulfed the industry, De Beers is taking action to help its struggling buyers.The middlemen who cut, polish and trade the world’s gems were at the center of a disastrous year for the diamond industry last year, after a glut of both rough and polished stones destroyed profit margins and banks tightened financing. De Beers...Read More
RAPAPORT... Marvin Heyman, president of jewelry manufacturer and brand Oscar Heyman & Brothers for 14 years, died on February 23 at the age of 89.Heyman began his career with the family-run firm started by his uncle in 1953, working as a bench jeweler in the shop as well as in the company's diamond office. After 10 years, he moved to the workshop alongside his father, Harry Heyman, becomi...Read More
RAPAPORT... Borsheims has promoted Jaci Stuifbergen to marketing manager. She will oversee the company's marketing strategies, programs and campaigns.Stuifbergen, who started at the Berkshire Hathaway-owned business in 2012, was promoted to senior marketing and event specialist in 2018. In her new role, she will be responsible for guiding the store's print and catalog production, digital adve...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers plans to split sightholders into three categories and offer each group a more bespoke selection of rough diamonds as part of changes to its sales system.Manufacturers, dealers and retailers will sign specific supply contracts designed for the "broad needs" of each business model, a De Beers spokesperson told Rapaport News Thursday.The arrangement will take effect in Janua...Read More
RAPAPORT... Baselworld has called off this year's fair after Swiss authorities banned large-scale events because of the coronavirus.Show organizer MCH Group has postponed the event - which had been scheduled to take place April 30 to May 5 in Basel, Switzerland - to January 28 to February 2, 2021, it said Friday. From then on, the fair will take place at the beginning of each year, in accorda...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Russia's deputy finance minister Alexey Moiseev says he's working on a "road map" towards lifting a ban on rough diamond exports from parts of the Central African Republic (CAR). Exports have been allowed from some parts of the poverty-stricken country, labelled green areas, since a total ban was lifted in 2013. But sales of "conflict diamonds" from so-called "red areas",...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Prices remained fairly stable in January, with the range of mixed but minor changes that have become a theme in recent months. There was isolated or limited movement in some categories of round and fancy, but a standstill in most.Larger rounds (1.50-2.99 ct) saw modest increases of up to 3 per cent and pointers (0.18 to 0.29 ct) were up in some categories around 5 per cent. Ha...Read More
(IDEX Online) - De Beers is reportedly set to update its terms with sightholders, in response to a disastrous year for the diamond industry in 2019. The 80 or so sightholders will be divided into dealers, manufacturers and integrated retailers, according to reports by Bloomberg and Reuters. As a result, they'll get stones better suited to their needs. Buyers currently have no choice but to ac...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Baselworld, the largest watch and jewelry event in the world, has been forced to cancel its 2020 event because of coronavirus. Organizers said it had no option and was re-scheduling the show for January 2021. Last year Baselworld 2019 attracted 81,000 visitors, down by more than a fifth on the previous year. The cancellation also follows a ban by Swiss authorities on any gathering...Read More
Angola sold just over 9.44-million carats of diamonds last year, earning $1.299-billion, the National Diamond Commercialisation Company of Angola (Empresa Nacional de Comercialização de Angola) – better known as Sodiam – has reported. This represented a year-on-year increase of 12.3% in production and 6.2% in revenues. At the presentation of these figures, in Luanda, Ango...Read More
Diamond market weak as coronavirus shuts down China and weighs on global economy. Financial markets slump with Dow -7% (Feb. 21-27). Gold rallies +4% to $1,653 per ounce (Feb. 1-27). Indian market facing severe liquidity crunch as sales to China stop. Luxury retailers reviewing Hong Kong presence after 2019 protests and ongoing epidemic lead to drop in sales. De Beers gives sightholders added flex...Read More
RAPAPORT... Revenue at Michael Hill grew 4.4% year on year to AUD 329.5 million ($216.7 million) in the Australian jeweler's first fiscal half, as investments in digital platforms paid off.Same-store sales - at retail locations open for at least a year - rose 6.3% for the six months ending December 29, reflecting increases across its network in Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Net profit cl...Read More
Diversified miner Anglo American has welcomed the measures to facilitate cross-border financial transactions, in support of trade and investment, announced by South Africa’s Finance Minister Tito Mboweni during his National Budget Speech on Wednesday.In a statement on Thursday, Anglo explained that annexures to the Budget Review provided additional detail, including a shift from the current...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Organizers have announced new dates for the SEASONS | Spring - Fashion Jewellery & Accessories Fair, after it they were forced to postpone the event because of coronavirus. The show, originally scheduled for 3 to 6 March at the AsiaWorld-Expo, Hong Kong, will now take place at the same venue from 19 to 21 May. "This decision has been reached following careful consideration and...Read More