RAPAPORT... Revenue from Rio Tinto's diamond division slid 11% to $619 million in 2019 as prices for rough diamonds weakened, the miner reported Wednesday. The diamond unit recorded a net loss of $21 million, compared with a profit of $118 million a year ago. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) plunged 50% to $151 million.Diamond production fell 8% to 17 mill...Read More
RAPAPORT... De Beers has allowed clients to forgo buying certain rough diamonds at this week's sight, as the coronavirus outbreak has raised concerns about a polished glut.The miner has let sightholders defer purchases of goods that produce the types of polished popular in the Chinese retail market, a source at the sight told Rapaport News Wednesday. The concessions apply to 1- to 2-carat rou...Read More
RAPAPORT... Production at Firestone Diamonds faltered in the second fiscal quarter, as the miner faced a near monthlong power disruption it estimates will cost it $4.6 million.Output from the company's Liqhobong mine in Lesotho fell 39% to 138,000 carats in the three months ending December 31, due to the outage, during which Firestone was unable to operate its processing plant, it said Tuesday. Fo...Read More
RAPAPORT... India's polished-diamond exports dropped 6% to $1.65 billion in January, reflecting a lower average price, even as volumes rose. Rough imports also fell, according to data from the country's Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council. India Trade Data for January 2020Read More
MOSCOW – Russia, as this year's chair of an international body tackling the trade in conflict diamonds, will work to lift restrictions on the export of diamonds from the Central African Republic (CAR), deputy finance minister Alexei Moiseev said on Tuesday.A total ban on diamond exports from CAR was imposed in 2013 but partially lifted in 2016, allowing CAR to resume sales of diamonds fr...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.2020 will see lead transition into a market surplus after several years of significant deficit, according to Wood Mackenzie.Despite total exchange stocks of refined metal remaining near historical lows, softening demand has damaged se...Read More
(IDEX Online) - A power outage halted ore treatment at Firestone's Liqhobong, mine in Lesotho, for almost a month and cost $4.6 million, the company said today. The disruption increased costs in Q2 - $14.90 per tonne treated compared with $10.32 in Q1, according to the quarterly operations update. The number of tonnes treated was reduced to 668,120 (Q1: 963,986 tonnes) and diamond recove...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.All eyes will be on the Indonesian nickel market in 2020.The knives may be out for the country’s nascent stainless industry but the staggering potential for expansion in NPI may reduce the impact of the nickel ore export ban to...Read More
Aim-listed Firestone Diamonds’ share price on the LSE fell by more than 68% on Tuesday after it announced that it planned to delist from the Aim.A general meeting will be convened on March 13 for shareholders to vote on the proposed delisting. Seventy-five per cent of shareholders will need to vote in favour of the delisting.AdvertisementFirestone explained in a circular to shareholders that...Read More
(IDEX Online) - Experts were surprised to find a lab-grown diamond that had been laser-treated to enhance clarity. It is believed to be the first reported case of an LGD having undergone a treatment associated only with mined stones. Researchers at the Gemological Science International laboratory in Mumbai, India, found the 4.5-ct stone had been drilled to clean out a black inclusion. "Diam...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.So this is Christmas, as John Lennon sang: another year over, and a new one just begun. It is the time of year for taking stock and looking to the future, and in that spirit, I have collected a selection of predictions for 2020 from 1...Read More
Stainless steel scrap prices in the United States were relatively steady over the past week despite a decline in the nickel market."Prices have managed to hang in there despite the huge fall in [London Metal Exchange] nickel," one domestic dealer source said.The monthly average of the LME nickel cash price was at $5.82 per lb through February 25, down by 5.4% from January's average...Read More
The Turkish steel mills have continued to be largely silent in the deep-sea scrap markets to try to restrict the upward trend in prices, sources said on Wednesday February 26.The mills were very active in the deep-sea scrap markets in the period February 4-24, booking at least 22 cargoes totaling more than 700,000 tonnes. As a result, scrap import prices into Turkey have been climbing since the be...Read More
Seaborne coking coal prices remained firm on Wednesday February 26, but some Chinese participants expressed doubts over the longevity of the strength given increasing concerns about the health of the global economy and with prices having been on an upwards trend for several weeks.Fastmarkets indicesPremium hard coking coal, fob DBCT: $159.30 per tonne, up $0.10 per tonnePremium hard coking coal, c...Read More
Seaborne iron ore prices dropped on Wednesday February 26 amid burgeoning concerns over the spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outside China and its impact on the global economy. Fastmarkets iron ore indices62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $88.10 per tonne, down $2.73 per tonne.62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $89.16 per tonne, down $2.68 per tonne.58% Fe fines high-premium, cfr Qingdao:...Read More
Bulk cargoes are being increasingly favored by Asian ferrous scrap buyers in light of rising container freight costs caused by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak.Buyers in key import markets Taiwan and Vietnam are focusing heavily on Japanese H2 or H1 & H2 (50:50) cargoes, eschewing containerized ferrous scrap cargoes from the United States' West Coast.Negotiations for bulk H1 & H2 (50:50)...Read More
China's steel industry has faced difficulties in production and sales since the first working day after the Lunar New Year holiday due to the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) outbreak, which has led to some 78,000 infections and close to 2,700 deaths in the country so far.Here are eight key effects of the outbreak has had on the Chinese steel industry, according to the China Iron & Steel Association...Read More
Base metals prices were for the most part weaker this morning, Wednesday February 26, weighed down by further weakness from global equity markets that have in recent days been shaken from their complacency.The latest retreat in equities was partly fueled by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warning Americans to prepare for the spread of the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) in the Unit...Read More
China's domestic rebar prices were flat on Wednesday February 26 despite declining futures, with strengthening end-user demand providing support to the market.Eastern China (Shanghai): 3,450-3,480 yuan ($490-495) per tonne, unchanged Northern China (Beijing): 3,380-3,420 yuan per tonne, unchanged With less logistical disruptions and more workers in the transportation sector back at work, demand fo...Read More
Thin trading in China's domestic hot-rolled coil market continued to put pressure on prices on Wednesday February 26, though exporters stuck to their high offers.DomesticEastern China (Shanghai): 3,560-3,570 yuan ($506-507) per tonne, unchangedNorthern China (Tangshan): 3,300-3,320 yuan per tonne, down 30 yuan per tonneTraders in Shanghai reported that buying slowed down further after the price mo...Read More