RAPAPORT... The Asian Institute of Gemological Sciences (AIGS) haslaunched a mobile app that can verify its gemstone reports, following a recent slew of counterfeiting cases. "This new app is necessary in order to protect ourcustomers," AIGS chairman Kennedy Ho said last week. "This is the most secureway to verify our reports from now on." The app - which AIGS says is the first of itskind -a...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales of higher-quality stones and an increased average price drove a spike in Alrosa's profit and revenue in 2018.Profit increased 15% to RUB 90.4 billion ($1.39 billion),while revenue climbed 9% to RUB 299.7 billion ($4.62 billion), the miner saidlast week. The company's diamond sales jumped 12% to RUB 278 billion ($4.29billion), despite a 12% decrease in sales volume to 26.4 mi...Read More
Reuters reported that the World Bank is to lend Angola, a country blessed with enormous mineral resources, $1 billion to fund social security and water projects, the office of Angola's president Joao Lourenco relayed earlier this week. Angola, which is Africa's second largest oil producer, and a leading diamond producer reportedly has been "pushed into an economic crisis by the fall in oil p...Read More
The Israel Diamond, Gemstone and Jewelry Administration of the Ministry of Economy released a list of fifteen of its leading polished diamond exporters for the year 2018.Some of Israel's leading diamond exporters have declined, sometimes for many years, to allow their names and data to be made public. The MID - House of Diamonds company continues as Israel's number one exporter, with $196 million,...Read More
With the credibility of economic analysts in the doldrums, following their miscalculations on US market growth during the holiday season of 2018, a recent report issued by the Bank of America Corporation (BofA) that retail sales are about to rebound, was therefore greeted with reservations by the media. In February, US retail sales dipped 0.1 percent, according to a recent report issued by Bank o...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sales of higher-quality stones and an increased average price drove a spike in Alrosa's profit and revenue in 2018.Profit increased 15% to RUB 90.4 billion ($1.39 billion),while revenue climbed 9% to RUB 299.7 billion ($4.62 billion), the miner saidlast week. The company's diamond sales jumped 12% to RUB 278 billion ($4.29billion), despite a 12% decrease in sales volume to 26.4 mi...Read More
GABORONE - Botswana's Debswana Diamond Mining, a joint venture between De Beers and the southern Africa country's government, aims to keep production at around 24 million carats this year, its managing director said on Friday.Debswana lifted diamond output by 6 percent to a four-year high of 24.1 million carats in 2018, buoyed by strong demand from the United States, China and India."I see the yea...Read More
MOSCOW - Russian state-controlled diamond producer Alrosa said on Friday its 2018 net profit rose 15% to 90.4 billion roubles ($1.4 billion), as a fall in sales volume was offset by stronger global prices.Though sales volume fell by 8% year-on-year, stronger pricing, particularly in the first half of 2018, meant sales by value increased by 6 percent to $4.4 billion, Alrosa said.This helped to lift...Read More
Australia's Lucapa Diamond (ASX:LOM) has recovered an 83.9 carat diamond from its recently commissioned Mothae mine in Lesotho, Africa.The stone is the fourth diamond over 50 carats the company has recovered to date at its 70%-owned Mothae operation.While the find was not gem-quality, Lucapa says it continues to underline the large-stone nature of the kimberlite resource.Commercial production at...Read More
MOSCOW – Russian State-controlled diamond producer Alrosa said on Friday its 2018 net profit rose 15% to 90.4 billion roubles, as a fall in sales volume was offset by stronger global prices.Though sales volume fell by 8% year-on-year, stronger pricing, particularly in the first half of 2018, meant sales by value increased by 6% to $4.4-billion, Alrosa said.AdvertisementThis helped to lift re...Read More
Aim-listed BlueRock Diamonds on Friday said it was finalising preparations for the move to continuous operations at its Kareevlei diamond mine, in Kimberley, South Africa.The company said that although this was later than had initially been anticipated, it would not have any material impact on the published production guidance of 35 000 t to 45 000 t for the first quarter.AdvertisementBlueRock exp...Read More
GABORONE – Botswana's Debswana Diamond Mining, a joint venture between De Beers and the southern Africa country's government, aims to keep production at around 24-million carats this year, its managing director said on Friday.Debswana lifted diamond output by 6 percent to a four-year high of 24.1-million carats in 2018, buoyed by strong demand from the United States, China and India....Read More
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – An 83 ct diamond has been recovered from the Mothae kimberlite project, in Lesotho.ASX-listed Lucapa Diamond Company on Friday said that the diamond was the fourth stone measuring larger than 50 ct to be recovered from Mothae to date, and while the 83.9 ct diamond was not considered gem-quality, it continued to underline the large-stone nature of the resource.Adver...Read More
JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – In an industry that’s plagued by a lack of development and depleting assets, diamond exploration, evaluation and mining geologist Dr John Bristow has called on the industry to be driven by small-, medium-sized and microenterprises (SMMEs).Speaking at the South African Diamond Producers Organisation (Sadpo) conference, in the North West, on Friday, he s...Read More
On March 14 the Mining Association of Canada released the latest edition of its annual Facts & Figures report that provides a comprehensive overview of the trends affecting Canada's mining sector. It contains the unwanted truth that this country's competitiveness continues to erode.Canada is losing its ability to seize new opportunities for growth and it is essential the federal and provincial gov...Read More
Africa-focused Gem Diamonds (LON:GEMD) has sold a 13.33 carat pink diamond recovered at its flagship Let??eng mine in Lesotho last month for $8.8 million.The high-quality pink colour type I diamond sold at a tender in Antwerp, Belgium, achieving a record price per carat of almost $657,000.Let??eng mine is well-known for yielding some extraordinary diamonds, such as the 910-carat "Lesotho Legen...Read More
Market sentiment weak, with select categoriesseeing demand. Diamonds between 0.70 ct. and 1.99 ct. moving well, but largestones slow. Sluggish demand for goods under 0.50 ct., with manufacturersreducing production of that size. Rough market subdued. Alrosa Jan.-Feb. sales-40% to $627M. Belgium Feb. rough imports -28% to $621M, polished exports -3%to $1.2B. Gem Diamonds 2018 revenue +25% to $267M,...Read More
Sentiment cautious, with selective interestin smaller sizes. Surplus of +11 goods has placed pressure on prices. Firmstrading rough rather than manufacturing, creating shortages in certain meleecategories. Slow demand for diamonds under 0.50 carats, but better sales ofround, 1 ct. stones. Dealers seeing stronger orders from US than China, withcertified goods easier to sell than uncertified. Liquid...Read More
RAPAPORT... Gem Diamonds has announced the sale of a 13.33-carat pinkdiamond, discovered in February at its mine in Lesotho, for $8.8 million. The tender sale, which took place in Antwerp, represents a record per-caratprice of $656,933 for the company, it said Thursday. The result builds on a successful 2018 for Gem Diamonds, which morethan doubled its profits to $46.6 million, it reported. The mi...Read More
RAPAPORT... Alrosa has begun accepting payments in euros, as it continues to test the waters with currenciesother than dollars. The move, which currently extends to only one of its Chinese clients, is an attempt to avoid theconsequences of future US sanctions on the Russian miner, according the SouthChina Morning Post. That publication identified the client as Hong Kong-based jewelryretailer...Read More