Jewelers in India have shattered a world record with a ring made of 50,907 diamonds.
The Eutierria Ring has more than twice as many diamonds as the previous record holder, The Touch of Ami, with 24,679 diamonds. Both rings were made in India.
The new ring, created by H.K. Designs and Hari Krishna Exports, was certified last month by Guinness World Records as the ring with the most diamonds.
The ring took nine months to design and make, entirely of recycled materials – 460.55 grams of gold and 130.19 carats of diamonds all re-purposed from customer returns.
It is designed as a sunflower with four layers of petals, a shank, two diamond discs, and a butterfly.
It has been certified by IGI and has a retail value of $785,645, according to a press release issued jointly by both companies.
It takes its name, Eutierria, from a term describing a positive feeling of oneness with the earth.
US authorities are investigating a massive theft of jewelry from a Brink’s armored vehicle in California last week.
The truck was transporting goods to the International Gem & Jewelry Show in Pasadena, California, exhibition director Brandy Swanson told Rapaport News on Tuesday. The victims were 16 to 18 vendors. The contents included “high-end jewelry, watches and diamonds,” Swanson said.
The executive estimated the losses at $100 million to $150 million. Brink’s put the value at less than $10 million, according to media reports — a discrepancy explained by the practice of vendors underinsuring goods, Swanson noted.
“They all have invoices and paperwork to show the higher value,” Swanson said.
The theft occurred early on July 11, according to a spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in Los Angeles, which is investigating the case together with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
On that day, deputies from the Sheriff’s Department station in Santa Clarita, California, were called to the “Flying J” rest stop and gas station in the mountain community of Lebec in response to the burglary of a cargo container.
They “learned that several pieces of jewelry and gemstones valued at several million dollars were stolen from a locked ‘Brink’s’ tractor trailer by unknown suspects,” the department said Monday in a report.
“According to the information the customers provided to us before they shipped their items, the total value of the missing items is less than $10 million,” Brink’s said in a statement quoted in the US media. “We are working with law enforcement, and we will fully reimburse our customers for the value of their assets that were stolen, in accordance with the terms of our contract.” The company did not respond to a request for comment from Rapaport News.
The largest deal in luxury is back on after New York’s famed jeweller Tiffany agreed to a slightly reduced offering price from LVMH in Paris.
LVMH will now pay $US131.50 for each Tiffany share, putting the total price tag at $US15.8 billion ($22.5 billion), down from the $16.2 billion that was first offered earlier this year.
Tiffany’s
The owner of Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Fendi along with a basket of wine and champagne brands, appeared to walk away from the acquisition last month after it said the French government had pushed for a delay because of the threat of proposed US tariffs. But the reasons for its cold feet seemed to shift, and there was pressure from investors on both sides to make a deal happen.
Rumours that the two luxury companies had rekindled talks began to surface in recent days.
“We are as convinced as ever of the formidable potential of the Tiffany brand and believe that LVMH is the right home for Tiffany,” LVMH’s billionaire CEO Bernard Arnault said in a prepared statement on Thursday.
Tiffany & Co’s flagship store in Sydney. The company has hired advisers to review LVMH’s offer but has not yet responded to it
Tiffany sues LVMH for reneging on $22b deal as France steps in Tiffany, with its famed blue boxes, has in recent years attempted to regain the luster of the “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” era as its customer base ages.
It’s shifted its focus to younger shoppers and made a significant push online. The deep pockets of LVMH could go a long way in helping that transformation along.
LVMH, led by billionaire Arnault, a consumate dealmaker, believes Tiffany will strengthen its position in high-end jewellery and in the US market.
LVMH is also making a bet on China’s economy, where Tiffany has been expanding.
The buyout has been approved by the boards of both companies, and it’s expected to close early next year.
Sales of jewelry and other luxury goods in Hong Kong fell by more than half in July, according to new figures.
It was the worst affected sector of all, with a year-on-year decline of 53.7 per cent to $328m.
Sales were hit by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, a two-week quarantine requirement for tourists from mainland China, and continuing anti-government protests.
Figures for the first half of 2020 show revenue from revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts was down by 64 per cent to $2.14 bn.
Total retail sales for all sectors were down 23.1 per cent compared with July 2019, at about $3.41bn, according to data released yesterday by the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region HKSAR government.
