RAPAPORT... Michael Hill's sales rose 6% in the first half of its fiscal year amid strong growth in holiday purchasing and a successful launch of lab-grown diamond jewelry.Group revenue climbed to AUD 327.3 million ($226.3 million) as higher sales in October and November outweighed weak consumer sentiment at the beginning of December, the jeweler reported Wednesday. Same-store sales - at branches...Read More
RAPAPORT... Belgium's diamond trade declined in 2019 as excess supply led to slower demand for rough and polished, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre said Wednesday.Polished exports fell 13% to $9.93 billion, their lowest level since 2009, Rapaport records showed, while rough imports and exports both slumped 26%. Total trading was also the weakest in a decade, sliding 19% to $37.1 billion."Manu...Read More
RAPAPORT... Lucara Diamond Corp. has sold Botswana's largest diamond to Louis Vuitton in a rare move that will see the fashion house partner with an Antwerp manufacturer to polish the stone.The mining company will receive an up-front payment for the 1,758-carat Sewel?? rough and retain a 50% interest in the final polished, it said in a statement Wednesday. While the diamond is of variable qua...Read More
Access our research platformsSign-in to our platforms to access our extensive research, our latest insight, data and analytics and to connect to our industry experts.Oil demand growth has been weak in 2019, with the OPEC+ group surprisingly extending their cuts by a further 500 kbd through to end of Q1 in 2020. In spite of that, fears of sustained weak demand growth have restricted Brent to mid US...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Lucara Diamond Corp. is collaborating with Louis Vuitton and the Antwerp manufacturing HB Company to transform the 1,758-carat Sewel?? ? diamond into a fine jewelry collection. The record-breaking diamond was recovered from the Karowe Diamond Mine in Botswana in April 2019.Lucara will receive an up front non-material payment for the Sewel?? ? and keep a 50-percent interest in the i...Read More
The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) has inaugurated a state-of-the-art luxury vault and safe deposit facility, the 818 Vault, in the Jumeirah Lakes Towers (JLT), in Dubai.Officially opened on Wednesday, the high-security vault adds to DMCC’s trade and business ecosystem that provides facilities, services and infrastructure to member companies operating in the gold, diamond, precious me...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Diamcor Mining Inc. sold 13,218 carats of rough in the its third fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2019. Gross revenue for the period totaled $1,412,117 or $106.83 per carat. The lower dollar per carat achieved during the period was due to the significantly higher percentage of smaller, lower quality rough diamonds recovered as part of the tailings-retreatment exercises at the...Read More
Domestic prices in Europe are almost unchanged day on day, but the mood in the market has remained positive, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday January 16.European steelmakers have moved offers up and are reluctant to give discounts, according to market sources. A lack of competitive import offers and some seasonal demand recovery are supporting the positive market sentiment.Fastmarkets' daily s...Read More
Turkish steel billet import prices fell slightly over the past week on the back of weakening scrap costs, and domestic and export billet prices are expected to follow suit soon, sources said on Thursday January 16.Fastmarkets' weekly price assessment for steel billet import, cfr main port Turkey, was $410-415 per tonne on Thursday, narrowing down from $410-420 per tonne last week.Steel billet supp...Read More
(IDEX Online) - India's state-owned miner NMDC could be getting a multi billion dollar contract to explore and mine diamonds at a diamond project abandoned by Rio Tinto, reports Reuters. Located in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, the Bunder deposits could contain millions of carats of diamonds, Neeraj Mandloi, the principal secretary of the state's Mineral Resource Department,...Read More
(IDEX Online) - The American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) is moving the judging of its annual AGTA Spectrum Awards Design Competition back to October. The move is to ensure that designers who have sourced their gemstones at the AGTA GemFair Tucson or AGTA GemFair Las Vegas have enough time to conceptualize and create their entries. "Spectrum is always such an incredible showcase of color, and...Read More
Brazilian producer Vale has halted operations at an iron ore mine at its subsidiary Ferrous Resources to allow for safety works, it said on Thursday January 16.Vale stopped operations of a waste and tailings pile at its Esperan??a mine as soon as it took control of Ferrous Resources, the company said...Read More
The seaborne iron ore index was rangebound on Thursday January 16, likely due to weaker demand from mills, while demand for low-alumina fines seemed robust.Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $96.36 per tonne, down $0.08 per tonne.62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $95.40 per tonne, down $0.08 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $97.20 per tonne, up $0.09 per...Read More
Coal import restrictions have emerged at the ports of Jingtang and Caofeidian in China, two key entry points for seaborne coking coal to the country's steelmaking hub of Tangshan, sources told Fastmarkets on Thursday January 16. Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $155.26 per tonne, unchangedPremium hard coking coal, cfr Jingtang: $160.87 per tonne, unchangedHard coking coal, fo...Read More
U.S. equity index futures were higher this morning. S&P 500 futures were up 10 points in pre-opening trade. Index futures were virtually unchanged following release of economic news at 8:30 AM EST. Consensus for December Retail Sales was an increase of 0.3% versus a gain of 0.2% in November. Actual was an increase of 0.3%. Excluding auto sales, consensus for December Retail Sales is an increas...Read More
China's hot-rolled coil prices were largely stable on Thursday January 16 amid thin trading activity, though rising inventory levels have raised concerns over they would trend in the weeks ahead.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,860-3,880 yuan ($560-563) per tonne, narrowing downward by 10 yuan per tonneNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,590 yuan per tonne, unchangedTrading activity was reported to be...Read More
Lower production rates are keeping China's domestic rebar prices supported amid weakening demand ahead of the Chinese New Year.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,640-3,670 yuan ($528-532) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Beijing): 3,540-3,560 yuan per tonne, unchangedSteel mills that operate electric-arc furnaces have lowered their production rates due to losses attributed to a weakened rebar market a...Read More
China's stainless steel prices decreased slightly ahead of the upcoming January 24-30 Chinese New Year holiday amid sluggish trading due to a segment of the market already starting their breaks well in advance."Producers made minor adjustments to their stainless steel prices, if any at all, because the price of nickel has been mostly stable with only minor movements," a steel processor source in e...Read More
Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly up at the close of the morning trading session on Thursday January 16, with market sentiment buoyed by the signing of a "phase one" trade agreement between China and the United States on Wednesday.The deal, signed between Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and US President Donald Trump at the White House, includes a pledge from Beijing to b...Read More
Key data from Wednesday January 15 pricing session in Shanghai and London. Key drivers Spot cobalt hydroxide payables made further gains after suppliers successfully translated their higher offers into business, with rising demand since late December. Business was concluded across the new range; producers reportedly sitting on comfortable inventories and showing little interest in cheaper bi...Read More