Gold has big year in 2020 and outlook for this year robust. Learn about monetary expansion and gold future prices.Read More
The gold futures price reached US$1,767/ounce this week before retreating, which was the second time it has surpassed US$1,760 in the past two months, marking some of gold's highest levels in several years.Read More
Trading relatively quiet as jewelers begin restockingafter holiday season. Top-tier independents and luxury retailers outpacinglarge jewelry chains: Signet Jewelers Nov./Dec. sales -3% to $1.8B, Richemont'sCartier and Van Cleef & Arpels 3Q revenue +9% to $2.3B, Forevermark 2018 USsales +8%. Cautious outlook for Chinese New Year as Chow Tai Fook 3Q same-storesales -7% in China, -6% in Hong Kong...Read More
Activity slower than usual for January. Dealersfocused on China and Hong Kong for Chinese New Year period. Domestic demandsteady as jewelers push bridal during ongoing wedding season. Manufacturersremain cautious due to tight profit margins, with factories operating belowcapacity since Diwali. Suppliers holding stock in preparation for Hong Kongshow. RoundRead More
RAPAPORT... Signet Jewelers' sales fell during the holiday season, prompting the retailer to lower its full-year outlook. Total revenue dropped 2.5% to $1.84 billion for the nine weeks ending January 5, while same-store sales - at branches open for at least a year - declined 1.3%, the company said Thursday. E-commerce revenue grew 5.6% to $222.3 million. "Our holiday-season performance fell s...Read More
In 2018, ALROSA, the largest diamond mining company in the world, held 32 international auctions receiving a total revenue of $463 million for the year, for its special size (over 10.8 carats) rough diamonds.Alrosa traditionally holds its auctions in Russia, Belgium Israel, Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and the United States. For the first time in many years, the company held two of its auct...Read More
RAPAPORT... The US jewelry industry downsized further last year, as bankruptciesand closures outnumbered new arrivals to the sector, the Jewelers Board ofTrade (JBT) reported. The number of businesses on the JBT's books fell 4.4% to25,102 in 2018, continuing the downward trend recorded over the past few years,according to data the group released Wednesday. However, the decline slowed versus...Read More
An economic slowdown in China, consumer of about half the world's commodities, is the single biggest challenge for the mining and metals sector in 2019. (Image courtesy of Liebherr.)A worsening of the ongoing economic slowdown in China, consumer of about half the world's commodities, is the single biggest challenge mining and metals companies face this year, a new survey of senior executives shows...Read More
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mixed at the close of trading on Thursday January 17, with zinc futures climbing just under 2% while positive trading in aluminium resulted in the metal's moderate volume the highest in today's trading. Zinc's three-month price rallied throughout the afternoon to breach its nearby $2,500-per-tonne resistance level and close at its highest level...Read More
RAPAPORT... The impact of lab-grown diamonds on the industry willsignificantly increase in the next two years, according to ABN Amro. "We think that 2019 and 2020 will be the years thatlab-grown diamonds take off and move from an introduction phase to a growthphase," Georgette Boele, senior precious metals and diamonds analyst for the Dutchbank, said in a report Tuesday. "Sooner, rather than later...Read More
Fastmarkets' minor metals team answers some of the key questions raised during our recent web seminar, discussing recent market trends in minor metals, and the factors expected to drive price moves in 2019. If you missed it, follow this link to listen to the free recording. Has smuggling affected any other metals apart from antimony? Is it only antimony that is being smuggled? It is not only antim...Read More
(IDEX Online) - CIBJO, the World Jewellery Confederation, and the Federation for European Education (FEEG) in Gemmology, will be presenting a day-long conference at the VICENZAORO January jewelry trade show, organized by the Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), in Vicenza on Saturday, January 19, where the principle focus will be on issues related to responsible sourcing and gemology. For CIBJO,...Read More
PERTH (miningweekly.com) – Diamond miner Lucapa Diamond Company produced 3 089 ct of diamonds from its Mothae operation, in Lesotho, during the December quarter.The 1.1-million-tonne treatment plant was commissioned during the December quarter, delivering Lucapa its second operational mine.AdvertisementLucapa said on Wednesday that the ramp-up at Mothae continued to progress well, with the p...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The organizers of the Jewelry Industry Summit have published the agenda and speaker roster for the upcoming Jewelry Industry Summit taking place in Tucson, Feb, 2-3. An international array of expert and experienced industry members will share their ideas and recommendations for actions that jewelers can take now to sustain the supply chain for jewelry products, the group sa...Read More
RAPAPORT... Stronger prices for higher-value rough diamonds boosted Mountain Province's 2018 sales, as the company sold its entire production for the year. The miner's sales surged79% year on year to $240 million in 2018, according to Rapaport calculations. Sales volumeincreased 64% to 3.3 million carats, with the average selling price up 6% to$74 per carat, it reported Wednesday. Diamond sal...Read More
* Does not provide EBITDA forecast, shares reverse course* Sees global consumption growth for aluminum between 3-4 pct* Expects global aluminum deficit to continueTop U.S. aluminum producer Alcoa Corp beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit on Wednesday, buoyed by strength in its alumina segment, but shares slipped after the company did not provide a closely watched profit measure for the...Read More
Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday January 17 that are worth another look.China's auto sales fell last year for the first time since the 1990s, dampening expectations for steel demand in 2019 although some in the market think that there are still opportunities for steelmakers to remain profitable.The London Metal Exchange announced it will launch seven new...Read More
RAPAPORT... Michael Hill's sales rose during the holiday period, buoyed bya shift in the company's marketing strategy, it said Tuesday. The jeweler's same-store sales - at branches open for at least a year- increased 1.3% year on year during the November-to-December period,but decreased 2.9% for the second fiscal quarter overall. Although salesfell, performance improved significantly compared to t...Read More
The copper and brass scrap markets in the United States are shifting back toward a supply-demand balance, but availability of some high-grade copper scrap items remains tight and continues to pressure spreads."Copper scrap is in a calm equilibrium... Spreads have ticked up some, but [that's] normal for the time of year," one consumer said. "[We are] are full. Metal is flowing to us well."Other con...Read More
RAPAPORT... The former CEO of Dominion Diamond Mines is launching alab-grown-diamond venture targeting the bridal market, the Financial Timesreported. Patrick Evans's company will produce synthetic stones at aUS location with access to cheap solar power, the report said Sunday. It willsell diamonds above 1 carat, pricing them at a discount of 15% to 20% offnatural diamonds. Evans left Dominion la...Read More
United States-based Alcoa, the world's eighth-largest aluminium producer, has forecast a surplus of alumina in 2019 while it increases metal production across the board.There was a 600,000-tonne deficit of alumina at the end of 2018, the company said, rounding off a year of record market tightness.Fastmarkets' alumina index rocketed upward to $707.75 per tonne on April 24, 2018, the highest since...Read More
French international banking group BNP Paribas has applied for category II membership of the London Metal Exchange, according to a notice released to members on Thursday January 17.The bank's futures entity, which is based in London and trades commodity futures and...Read More