Ian Khama, a former army general who’s led Botswana for the past decade, will step down on Sunday, leaving his deputy Mokgweetsi Masisi in charge of the world’s second-biggest diamond producer until next year’s elections.While Masisi, 55, will inherit one of Africa’s wealthiest and best-governed nations, he’ll still have his hands full reducing the economy’s dep...Read More
RAPAPORT... Sotheby's Magnificent Jewels spring sale in New York willfeature a 33.25-carat, D-flawless diamond pendant necklace with a high estimateof $5 million, the auction house said last week. The event - one of three New York sales Sotheby's will hold thismonth - will also include an array of colored-diamond jewelry. A 7.01-carat,fancy intense pink, SI2-clarity diamond ring is expected to go...Read More
In late March, Vancouver-based North Arrow Minerals (TSXV:NAR) reported additional diamond results from Q1-4 kimberlite Naujaat Diamond Project, located 9 kilometres north of Naujaat in Nunavut's Melville Peninsula."The samples were composited from drill core in the field based on observed lithological units and submitted for processing using a combined dense media separation / caustic fusion proc...Read More
RAPAPORT... Chopard has vowed to use 100% ethically sourced gold in all ofits jewelry and watch collections by the end of July, the company said lastweek. The jeweler has created an in-house gold foundry that will giveit complete oversight of all processes from the manufacturing stage to thefinished product. "As a family-run business, ethics have always been animportant part of our family philoso...Read More
(IDEX Online News) - There were relatively few price changes in March, with an equal mix of risers and decliners. There were a particularly small number of changes in categories under 0.50-0.69 carats, while diamonds in the 2.00-2.99 carat, 4.00-4.99 and 5.00-5.99 carat categories saw many risers than decliners. Fancy diamonds also saw relatively few price changes, particularly in the small...Read More
RAPAPORT... HRD Antwerp is expanding its presence in India with a newlocation at the Santacruz Electronic Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) in Mumbai, andanother one in the Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB). The Belgium-based diamond-certification and trainingfacility announced plans last week to launch a grading lab in the SEEPZjewelry-manufacturing hub, home to a large number of jewelry exporters. SEEPZi...Read More
RAPAPORT... Technology, synthetic diamonds, and midstream growth are among the topics that expert speakers will address at this year's Carat+ show in Antwerp.The diamond event, in its second year, has introduced Carat+Conference 2018, a series of talks that will take place during the trade fair.The conference will focus on industry issues, as well as broader subjects withinthe trade. Jonathan Chip...Read More
RAPAPORT... Bonhams New York will feature a 10.01-carat solitairediamond ringwith an estimate of $500,000 to $700,000 at its spring jewelry salethis month.The round brilliant-cut, F-color, VVS2 piece is from aprivate collection in the US, according to the auction house. Other notable lots include ruby and diamondcombinations: a Cartier Art Deco bracelet valued at $80,000 to $100,000; aBulgari neck...Read More
RAPAPORT... Chopard has vowed to use 100% ethically sourced gold in all ofits jewelry and watch collections by the end of July, the company said lastweek. The jeweler has created an in-house gold foundry that will giveit complete oversight of all processes from the manufacturing stage to thefinished product. "As a family-run business, ethics have always been animportant part of our family philoso...Read More
Canada's Northwest Territories and Nunavut, two of the three regions with the lowest income per capita, have experienced a dramatic decline in exploration spending during the last ten years, data from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) shows.According to NRCan most recent numbers, spending in the N.W.T. is expected to decline to $81.3 million this year, down from $90 million in 2017. Exploration spe...Read More
Market slowing ahead of Passover andEaster. Recovery in watch industry lifts mood at Basel show, but event fails toraise diamond-dealer sentiment due to low attendance. Indian fraud cases increaseconcerns about credit. High rough prices reducing manufacturing profit, withpolished factories working below full capacity. Asian demand up, with Chow SangSang 2017 sales +3% to $2.1B, profit +18% to $112...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The 62nd Bangkok Gems and Jewelry Fair 2018 is to be held from September 7-11, at IMPACT Muang Thong Thani, Bangkok, Thailand. It will feature 900 companies in over 2,000 booths from selected domestic and overseas exhibitors. Goods on offer will include gemstones (precious stones, semi-precious stones), rough stones, diamonds, pearls, precious metal, synthetic...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The Baselworld watch and jewelry show wrapped up its 2018 edition on Tuesday after six days. The show previously lasted eight days. This year's edition also saw a smaller attendance - down to 600+ exhibitors from 1,300 last year and about 1,500 the year before. Baselworld's organizers announced last year that they were planning to reduce the length of...Read More
(IDEX Online) - HRD Antwerp has announced the opening of a jewelry grading lab in the Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone (SEEPZ) in Mumbai, where manufacturers/exporters are based. "Our customers will have safe, reliable and easy access to our services," said Ravi Chhabria, Managing Director of HRD Antwerp India. "Our laboratory has the know-how and tools to thoroughly analyze je...Read More
RAPAPORT... Mountain Province saw $134 million in revenue from the firstyear of operations at its Gahcho Ku?(C) mine, the company said this week. The miner sold 2 million carats at an average price of $70per carat during 2017, and recorded a profit of $13.4 million (CAD 17.2 million). MountainProvince started recovering diamonds from the asset in late 2016 and reachedcommercial production - its ex...Read More
RAPAPORT... Firestone Diamonds recorded its first half-year revenue from the Liqhobongmine in Lesotho, the company said Tuesday. The miner saw sales of $28 million from the recovery of379,716 carats during the six months ending December 31, at an average price of$74 per carat.The company posted a net loss of $1.9 million for the period. "In our first six months of full-scale production at Liqhobon...Read More
RAPAPORT... Firestone Diamonds recorded its first half-year revenue from the Liqhobongmine in Lesotho, the company said Tuesday. The miner saw sales of $28 million from the recovery of379,716 carats during the six months ending December 31, at an average price of$74 per carat.The company posted a net loss of $1.9 million for the period. "In our first six months of full-scale production at Liqhobon...Read More
Adapted from white paper by SAPAccording to Harvard Business Review (HBR 2017), billions of dollars are being invested in blockchain technology, and some of the smartest people on the planet are engaged in understanding how this technology can reinvent organizations and industries. A report from PriceWaterhouse Coopers (PwC 2017) has named blockchain as a 'tech breakthrough megatrend' for CIOs, wh...Read More
RAPAPORT... Baselworld 2018, which ended Tuesday, saw a year-on-yeardecline from 1,300 exhibitors to approximately 650, and was shortened fromeight days to six. Considering that the world's largest watch and jewelry fairhosted 1,500 participants in 2016, this year's drop seems even more dramatic. Moredefections are expected next year as contracts with exhibitors expire. In a terse statement in No...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Botswana's Debswana Diamond Mining said output rose sharply last year - up 11 percent to a three year high - and it expects further growth this year as lower taxes in the United States leave consumers with more money to spend. De Beers Executive Vice-President, Diamond Trading, Paul Rowley, explained in an interview with Reuters that diamond sales had received a boost from a...Read More