Lucapa Diamond Company has sold six diamonds recovered from the Lulo mine, in Angola, in a special tender for $12.4-million.
The diamonds totalled 447 ct and consisted of five white Type IIa diamonds, as well as a pink diamond.
The average price per carat was about $27 700.
MD and CEO Nick Selby deems the tender result pleasing. “Our alluvial project, in Angola, continues to deliver fantastic diamonds that are always in demand through all market cycles and achieve very competitive values.”
India’s exports of polished diamonds suffered another hefty drop in June, down 26 per cent year-on-year to $1.02bn.
Foreign sales in May were down by almost 15 per cent to $1.47bn, according to new figures from the GJEPC (Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council).
Polished diamond exports have fallen every month this year, down 20 per cent in January, 28 per cent in February, 27 per cent in March and 17 per cent in April.
Gross imports of rough diamonds for April to June dropped by 15 per cent by value to $3.39bn and 6 per cent by volume.
Overall exports of all gems and jewelry declined by 15 per cent in June to $1.9bn.
Nirmala Sitharaman finance minister of india in a press confrence .
India’s diamond industry welcomed a raft of measures announced in today’s budget (23 July) which will encourage direct diamond sales from foreign mining companies and reduce tax on key raw materials.
Finance Minister Nirmala (pictured) said safe harbor rates would be introduced, providing fixed and favorable tax rates for rough purchases in the country’s SNZs (Special Notified Zones).
Safe harbor streamlines the taxation process and eliminates unexpected liabilities for foreign suppliers.
Sitharaman also announced significant tax reductions on gold and silver to 6 per cent (from 15 per cent and 10 per cent) and on platinum to 6.4 per cent (from 12.5 per cent) and the exemption of diamond sales from a 2 per cent equalization levy aimed at promoting sustainability.
“India is a world leader in the diamond cutting and polishing industry, which employs a large number of skilled workers,” Sitharaman said in her Budget speech.
“To further promote the development of this sector, we would provide for safe harbor rates for foreign mining companies selling raw diamonds in the country.”
“I want to applaud and congratulate the Central Government for their three-point game changing decisions for the gems and jewellery industry,” said Vipul Shah, chairman of GJEPC (Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council).
“The reduction of customs duty on gold and silver, exclusion of diamond sector from 2 per cent equalisation level and simplifying taxation rules in Special Notified Zones (SNZ) for rough diamonds will provide a leadership position to the Indian gems and jewellery industry.”
Debswana Jwaneng Diamond mine, Botswana, South Africa
De Beers reported a 15 per cent drop in its global diamond production in Q2, as demand remained weak for yet another quarter.
The H1 figure (16.5m carats) is down 19 per cent on the same period in 2023.
The total number of carats recovered during Q2 2024 was 6.4m, down from 7.6m year-on-year. Botswana, which accounts for around two thirds all De Beers’ production, was worst hit, with output down 19 per cent.
De Beers blamed “intentional lower production from short-term changes in plant feed mix at Jwaneng to process existing surface stockpiles”.
Jwaneng, De Beers’ biggest deposit saw output drop 36 per cent during the quarter, from 2.5m carats to 1.9m.
Production in Namibia was down 8 per cent, Canada slipped 1 per cent and South Africa increased by 8 per cent.
In its Production Report for the Second Quarter of 2024, De Beers said guidance for the year remained unchanged at 26m-29m carats.
But parent company Anglo American has indicated that production for the year (originally given as 29m-32m carats) could well be further reduced to manage working capital and preserve cash in a weak market.
US pop icon Ariana Grande is the new brand ambassador for Swarovski , the Austria-based crystal and jewelry company.
Grande, aged 31, a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and actress, will star in the company’s upcoming holiday campaign.
Swarovski, which reported increased sales of $1.99bn in 2023, says it chose Grande as a “powerful advocate for inclusion and empowerment”. It describes her a “true style icon”.
Grande said: “It’s an honor to represent a house that shares my passion for creativity, pushes the boundaries beyond the world of jewelry, and promotes values of unapologetic self-expression.”
Giovanna Engelbert, Swarovski’s global creative director, said: “Ariana is a brilliant artist whose creativity shines through her songwriting and vocal performances as well as her personal style. I look forward to engaging in inspiring creative dialogues together.”
Grande started her career in the Broadway musical 13 when she was just 15. She had just finished on stage in Manchester, England, in May 2017, when an Islamic extremist suicide bomber killed 22 fans as they were leaving the arena.
In a significant move, the world’s largest diamond mining company by value has announced further production cuts, adding to its already implemented plan to curtail output by 10 percent. This decision led to a 15 percent year-on-year decline in second-quarter production, dropping to 6.4 million carats, as reported in an update on Thursday.
The potential sale or listing of De Beers was a crucial component of Anglo’s broader strategy to fend off a £39 billion takeover bid from industry giant BHP earlier this year. However, the ongoing slump in the diamond market poses a challenge to achieving this goal by the end of 2025.
“Trading conditions became more challenging in the second quarter as Chinese consumer demand remained subdued,” stated Duncan Wanblad, Anglo’s chief executive.
High inventories for diamond traders and manufacturers, coupled with expectations of a slow recovery, have prompted the company to consider further production cuts. This strategy aims to manage working capital and preserve cash amid the tough market conditions.
The prospect of deeper production cuts comes as the company disclosed the impact of other setbacks in its second-quarter production update, which had been anticipated by analysts.
Anglo has downgraded its full-year guidance for metallurgical coal from 15-17 million tonnes to 14-15.5 million tonnes following a fire at its Grosvenor mine in Australia, which has been out of action for months. Costs for the coal business are also expected to rise significantly this year, estimated at $130 to $140 per tonne, up from $115 per tonne.
The company is prioritising the sale of its metallurgical coal division due to strong buyer interest, with plans to divest De Beers, its platinum unit, and nickel operations to follow.
Additionally, an impairment on the Woodsmith fertiliser mine in North Yorkshire, UK, is expected in the upcoming half-year results, as spending on the project is drastically cut back as part of the turnaround plan.
Despite these challenges, shares in Anglo rose by 2 percent in early trading in London on Thursday, buoyed by production results for most commodities exceeding consensus analyst forecasts. The company achieved record second-quarter iron ore production in Brazil and is on track to meet its guidance for the copper unit.
Wanblad reaffirmed his commitment to streamlining the company to focus on just copper, iron ore, and fertiliser within 18 months. “We are working at pace to execute on the asset divestments, including steelmaking coal,” he said. “Work is progressing with the aim of substantively completing this transformation by the end of 2025.”
A wealthy US doctor splashed out $275,000 on 5 ct emerald cut diamond for his fiancace.
He plans to have the D colour, flawless gem set in an engagement ring, according to California based Varsha Diamonds, which made the sale through retail partner Phillips Jewelry, in Tennessee.
“We’ll be setting it in the mounting of their choice,” said business owner Robbi Philips. “They are thrilled, and so are we. I feel honored to have found them a remarkable diamond that they will be proud of and will cherish forever.”
Varsha says its Fireworks brand diamonds are cut for beauty rather than size and the symmetrical step cuts achieve maximum white light brilliance.
“Fireworks Diamonds are scientifically proven by AGS’s Angular Spectrum Evaluation Tool (ASET) and Sarine light performance technologies to be the largest and brightest diamonds in the world, and all because of the way they are cut,” said Jay Mehta, director of business operations at Varsha.
Nita Ambani was a vision of opulence, literally studded in diamonds! Yes, you read that right. The grooms mother is renowned for her extravagant taste in jewels, showcasing an array of rubies, emeralds, and sapphires. But her love for these gems doesn’t stop at just necklaces; she seamlessly integrates them into her hair and clothing as well. On Sunday, the Ambani family hosted a grand reception to continue the celebrations of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant’s wedding, which kicked off with a spectacular ceremony on Friday, July 12. The Mumbai event was a glittering affair, with family members like Mukesh, Nita, Akash, and Isha Ambani in attendance, alongside a host of Bollywood and international celebrities.
Nita Ambani never fails to make a fashion statement, and her latest appearance at the reception was nothing short of spectacular. With her saree adorned in exquisite jewels and draped with unparalleled elegance, she once again proved her status as a fashion icon.
The value of rough diamonds mined globally during 2023 fell by just over 20 per cent, down from $16bn in 2022 to $12.7bn according to the latest Kimberley Process (KP) figures.
The volume of diamonds mined fell by 7.6 per cent to 111.5m carats, and average per carat prices slipped almost 14 per cent from $132.27 to $114.10.
Production in Russia fell by 11 per cent, from 42m carats in 2022 to 37.3m carats, although average price carat actually increased by 14 per cent from $84.77 to $96.64. Exports were down 5 per cent to $3.68bn.
Botswana’s production volume increased slightly to 25.1m carats in 2023 but plunged 30 per cent by value, from $4.7bn in 2022 to $3.3bn.
The global diamond industry peaked in 2017, according to historical KP data, when production hit 150m carats, a 16 per cent leap from 126m carats the previous year.
It held firm at 149m carats in 2018, then slipped to 138m carats in 2019; 107m carats in 2020 (down 22 per cent) and 119m carats in 2021.
Botswana’s economy contracted by the most since the peak of the pandemic in early 2020, after diamond production plunged.
Gross domestic product shrank an annual 5.3% in the first quarter, compared with growth of 1.9% in the prior three months.
The downturn was primarily influenced by a decrease in real value added of the diamond traders and mining & quarrying industries of 46.8% and 24.8% respectively, Statistics Botswana said in a report Friday.
Botswana is the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds by value, with the revenues making up the bulk of the southern African country’s budget receipts. The decline is likely to make meeting its fiscal targets for this year difficult. The central bank already warned last week that the government would probably miss its economic growth forecast of 4.2% because of weaker mining output.
The global diamond industry almost came to a standstill in the second half of last year as De Beers and Russia’s Alrosa PJSC — the two biggest miners — all but stopped supplies in a desperate attempt to stem a slump in prices. That hit earnings at De Beers, which mines more than three-quarters of its diamonds in Botswana.
Earlier this year De Beers said it expects any recovery in the beleaguered diamond market to be slow and gradual as the industry continues to suffer from weak economic growth in key markets such as China and the US.
