Bulawayo24, an online news service, reported that Zimbabwe has agreed with Botswana to start processing its diamonds at the Diamond Trading Company (DTC) in Gaborone. The agreement was reached during a high-level summit of the Zimbabwe-Botswana Bi-National Commission (BNC) in Harare in February. To implement the agreement, DTC diamond experts are to visit Zimbabwe this month. According to the rep...Read More
MCH Group has appointed Bernd Stadlwieser as CEO of the MCH Group. He succeeds Rene Kam, the veteran CEO who resigned after MCH's chief asset, BaselWorld lost close to 40 percent of its exhibitors in 2018. Bernd Stadlwieser has more than 20 years' international professional experience in the watch, jewelry and art business as well as in the fields of business development and digitisati...Read More
RAPAPORT... Russian diamond manufacturer Kristall Smolensk is selling areplica of the Great Imperial Crown of the Russian Empire on RapNet's newjewelry platform for $15.5 million. The crown, which weighs 2.3 kilograms, comprises more than11,000 round, oval and pear-shaped white diamonds, weighing 1,928 carats andset in white gold. The stones were sourced from Russian miner Alrosa, certifiedby...Read More
JOHANNESBURG – Zimbabwean Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube said a rule requiring local investors to control platinum mines will be scrapped and foreigners will be allowed to own 100% in a bid to revive investment.“We are removing that indigenization rule, which is discouraging foreign direct investment,” Ncube said in an interview with Bloomberg Television in Washington. “We s...Read More
Resource development, a principal economic driver of the Northwest Territories' (NWT) economy, is getting a $5.1 million boost in federal funding.The Government of Canada is investing in two projects that will support resource development in the Slave Geological Province (SGP), an area where the territory's three operating diamond mines are located.New mining projects are expected to inject n...Read More
RAPAPORT... A synthetics detector costing less than $7,000 has emerged asone of only three machines with a 100% accuracy score in a recent industry-widestudy. Yehuda's Sherlock Holmes, priced at $6,495, correctlyidentified all synthetic diamonds in a "deliberately challenging" sample,according to a report the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) and SignetJewelers released Tuesday. De Beers' Diamo...Read More
RAPAPORT... The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has enacted aresolution calling for reforms to increase the effectiveness of the KimberleyProcess (KP), the World Diamond Council (WDC) said. The European Union proposed the resolution at the assembly's73rd session on March 1, with all 193 UNGA members agreeing to it. "We are most heartened by the adoption of the resolution bythe UNGA, not on...Read More
RAPAPORT... Phillips has hired Geoffrey Hess as a consultant for itswatch department, to support the division's collaborations, events, sourcingand new business initiatives. Hess - an aficionado of vintage sports watches - was previously the CEOof vintage-timepiece platform Analog/Shift, the auction house said Monday. He was also CEO of Ivanka TrumpFine Jewelry and senior adviser to former New Yor...Read More
RAPAPORT PRESS RELEASE, March 5, 2019, Las Vegas ... Diamond dealers remained cautious in February amid excess supply and selective demand. Suppliers had low expectations for the important Hong Kong International Diamond, Gem & Pearl Show as economic and political factors have impacted sentiment in China. There was stable demand at the show for 0.70- to 1.99-carat, F-J, VS2-SI2 diamonds, with...Read More
The Canadian federal government has announced an investment of C$5.1-million in two projects to support resource development in the mineral-rich Slave Geological Province (SGP) – an area in the eastern Northwest Territories and western Nunavut.The two projects entail planning for the development of an all-season access corridor and an exploration development initiative.AdvertisementA lack of...Read More
Diamond miner De Beers on Tuesday reported that the value of its rough diamond sales for cycle two of the year was $490-million, compared with $500-million in cycle one and $563-million in cycle two of 2018.This brings the provisional total for rough diamond sales to date this year to $990-million.AdvertisementDe Beers sold about $5.39-billion of rough diamonds in 2018, and about $5.31-billion of...Read More
RAPAPORT... The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) has enacted aresolution calling for reforms to increase the effectiveness of the KimberleyProcess (KP), the World Diamond Council (WDC) said. The European Union proposed the resolution at the assembly's73rd session on March 1, with all 193 UNGA members agreeing to it. "We are most heartened by the adoption of the resolution bythe UNGA, not on...Read More
TSX-V-listed Tsodilo Resources says its BK16 kimberlite project, in the Orapa kimberlite field, in Botswana, is well placed to enter the market once the mine is established.In a presentation published by the company this week, Tsodilo stated that BK16 was already showing similarities to Lucara Diamond Corp’s Karowe diamond mine, in Botswana, as well as Petra Diamonds’ Koffiefontein min...Read More
RAPAPORT... Phillips has hired Geoffrey Hess as a consultant for itswatch department, to support the division's collaborations, events, sourcingand new business initiatives. Hess - an aficionado of vintage sports watches - was previously the CEOof vintage-timepiece platform Analog/Shift, the auction house said Monday. He was also CEO of Ivanka TrumpFine Jewelry and senior adviser to former New Yor...Read More
Investors flocked to Canada's Star Diamond Corporation (TSX:DIAM) on Monday after the company said its Saskatchewan-based project had an "unusually high" large quantity of high-value and large rough stones.A recent study has confirmed that about 27% of the diamonds at the company's Orion South and Star exploration sites are type IIa, a category that represents less than 2% of all rough stones mine...Read More
RAPAPORT... Star Diamond Corporation has noted a large quantity of high-valueand large rough stones at its two exploration sites in Canada, sending itsstock price shooting upward. Nearly 27% of diamonds at its Star project are type IIa, acategory that represents less than 2% of all rough diamonds mined fromkimberlites, the company reported Monday. The proportion of that category at its OrionSouth...Read More
RAPAPORT... Polished-diamond imports to Hong Kong were flat in 2018,according to data from the Diamond Federation of Hong Kong, China. The averageprice rose 3%, offsetting lower volumes. Polishedimports from China increased 10%, while shipmentsfrom the US dropped 5%, and supply from the United Arab Emirates slumped 31%. Imports from India slipped 1%.Hong Kong Diamond Trade Data for Full Year...Read More
RAPAPORT... Israeli-Belgian diamantaire Ehud Laniado died Saturday at65, following a heart attack during surgery at a Paris clinic, local media reported. Laniado, the founder of Mercury Diamond, a diamond-pricing consultancy firm, was undergoing an electiveprocedure, according to French magazine Le Point. Emergencypersonnel were unable to revive him. The industry veteran began his career as...Read More
Ehud Laniado, a well-known Israeli diamantaire, died last weekend - Saturday, March 1, 2019 - in a clinic in Paris, France where he was to undergo cosmetic surgery. According to the French publication Le Point, the cause of dead was cardiac arrest following a procedural injection in the abdomen. Laniado was the owner of the Mercury Diamonds company. He spent his early years in Africa and later in...Read More
The 63rd Bangkok Gems & Jewelry Fair which was held February 20 to 24, 2019 at Challenger Halls 1-3, IMPACT in the suburban Bangkok. The event welcomed over 14,000 visitors from 118 countries. According to the organizers, the number of foreign visitors was up 5.4 percent compared to 2018. Trade generated at the event was nearly 2.1 billion baht ($66 million). Thailand's Deputy Minister of Com...Read More