RAPAPORT... De Beers and United Nations Women have unveiled a three-yearplan to support more than 1,200 female entrepreneurs in Botswana, Namibia andSouth Africa. The initiative includes programs to train women in businessand management skills, and build their confidence and ability to operate andgrow successful small businesses. "When you support women business owners, you support acommunity mor...Read More
(IDEX Online) - ALROSA's "True Colours" auction of colored diamonds during the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair earlier this month raised $9 million. The miner said that 210 diamonds were sold in the first round of the auction, with strong bidding and most lots sold for well above their starting price. The so-called "hero stones" - diamonds with a particularly rare combinatio...Read More
RAPAPORT... Andrew Bone will step down as executive director of theResponsible Jewellery Council (RJC), the organization said Tuesday. Bone has led the RJC since 2015, during which time the organization's membership doubled, the group noted. He previously had an extensive tenure at De Beers, during which he was actively involved in industry initiatives such as the Kimberley Process Certification S...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Christie's Geneva will present the pink legacy, the largest and finest fancy vivid pink diamond ever offered at auction by the company, on November 13. Weighing just under 19 carats (18.96 carats), the exceptional rectangular-cut gem will lead Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction. The pink diamond from the Oppenheimer family has a pre-sale estimate of $30 million to $50 mi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The program is part of De Beers Group's three-year partnership with UN Women, which includes a US$3 million investment to advance women and girls in De Beers Group's diamond producing countries, announced in September last year. In addition to the capacity-building program for women micro-entrepreneurs in southern Africa, De Beers Group is providing scholarships to young wom...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The VICENZAORO September Jewellery Boutique Show, organized by the Italian Exhibition (IEG) in the Vicenza Exhibition Centre from September 22 to 26, recorded visitors from 117 countries, with foreign visitors accounting for over 40% of the total. Overall visitor attendance was in line with that of the September 2017 edition at more than 20,000, despite the period's overlapp...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers and United Nations Women have unveiled a three-yearplan to support more than 1,200 female entrepreneurs in Botswana, Namibia andSouth Africa. The initiative includes programs to train women in businessand management skills, and build their confidence and ability to operate andgrow successful small businesses. "When you support women business owners, you support acommunity mor...Read More
De Beers Group, in partnership with United Nations (UN) Women, is pleased to announce the launch of a three-year capacity-building programme to improve the livelihoods of more than 1,200 women micro-entrepreneurs in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa.The programme is designed to equip women micro-entrepreneurs with business and management skills to build their confidence and capacity to operate an...Read More
(Bloomberg) - Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila vowed delayed elections to select his successor will take place as planned this year.Presidential and parliamentary votes have been delayed since 2016, after the electoral commission failed to organize them on time. The central African nation, which is the world's largest cobalt producer, hasn't had a peaceful transition of power s...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's diamond industry is ramping up its marketing campaignsbefore the Diwali holiday by appealing to young, independent female consumers. Forevermark, De Beers' diamond jewelry brand, has launched "TheBetter Half Within," a range of digital, social-media, radio and in-store adsthat show the "poised, powerful and self-determined personality of the woman oftoday," the company explaine...Read More
RAPAPORT... Online-titan Amazon has filed a patent application that mayindicate it is planning to create its own private-label jewelry collection. "For Keeps by Amazon," which was filed at the US Patent andTrademark Office last week, is for "online retail sales of jewelry, namelyprecious metals and their alloys and goods in precious metals or coatedtherewith," according to the filing. Amazon sell...Read More
RAPAPORT... Michael Hill International has hired Daniel Bracken as itsnew CEO, replacing Phil Taylor, who is stepping down due to health issues. Bracken is currently the CEO of Australian retailer SpecialtyFashion Group, a position he has held since February. Previously, he was deputyCEO of the Myer department-store chain. "Daniel's global experience and strong commitment to createengaged custome...Read More
RAPAPORT... A 23.13-carat, emerald-cut diamond ring owned by Olympic gold medalist Katherine Domyan sold for $444,500 at Bonhams's New York sale, exceeding initial estimates for the stone. The Harry Winston piece, which had an I-color and I1-clarity grading, carried a pre-sale estimate of $250,000 to $350,000, and was among the top sellers from the collection owned by the Olympian-turned property...Read More
(IDEX Online) - With fewer than three weeks to go to the opening of the 2018 CIBJO Congress in Bogot??, Colombia, on October 15, the seventh of the CIBJO commissions' Special Reports has been released. Prepared by the CIBJO Pearl Commission, headed by Kenneth Scarratt, it focuses on the growing commitment of pearl farmers from around the world to set the golden standard for sustainabi...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Carats.io has announced that its diamond-backed CARAT coin is now being traded on the Hotbit.io digital asset exchange platform (https://www.hotbit.io/exchange?symbol=CARAT_BTC), with "promising volumes of trade that are increasing from day to day". Carats.io said that it selected to launch its currency on the Hotbit platform because of the crypto-exchange's strong pres...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's diamond industry is ramping up its marketing campaignsbefore the Diwali holiday by appealing to young, independent female consumers. Forevermark, De Beers' diamond jewelry brand, has launched "TheBetter Half Within," a range of digital, social-media, radio and in-store adsthat show the "poised, powerful and self-determined personality of the woman oftoday," the company explaine...Read More
RAPAPORT... An emerald-cut diamond ring owned by Olympic gold medalist Katherine Domyan sold for $444,500 at Bonhams's New York sale, exceeding initial estimates for the stone. The 23.13-carat Harry Winston piece, which had an I-color and I1-clarity grading, carried a pre-sale estimate of $250,000 to $350,000, and was among the top sellers from the collection owned by the Olympian-turned property...Read More
SEPTEMBER 25, 2018 - Carats.io has announced that its diamond-backed CARAT coin is now being traded on the Hotbit.io digital asset exchange platform (https://www.hotbit.io/exchange?symbol=CARAT_BTC), with promising volumes of trade that are increasing from day to day.Carats.io said that it selected to launch its currency on the Hotbit platform because of the crypto-exchange's strong presence in th...Read More
The largest and finest fancy vivid pink diamond ever offered at auction by Christie's it's about to go under its hammer in Geneva, with experts expecting it to fetch a record price of between $30 million and $50 million.The Pink Legacy was once owned by the Oppenheimer family, the former owners of De Beers.The rectangular cut diamond, named Pink Legacy, was once part of the Oppenheimer collectio...Read More
RAPAPORT... Swiss watch exports grew at a slower pace in August due to a drop in demand for lower-value timepieces. Total shipments rose 6% to CHF 1.5 billion ($1.55 billion),the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry reported. Exports of watches pricedover CHF 3,000 ($3,103) increased 7% by value, and those worth between CHF 500 ($517)and CHF 3,000 grew 8%. Timepieces valued at CHF 200 ($207...Read More