China has joined Russia in opposing an effort to redefine conflict diamonds to include those sold by individual nations, as a rift between Western and pro-Russia nations jeopardizes the process for certifying rough diamonds as conflict-free. Ukraine, Australia, Britain, Canada, the European Union, the United States and civil society groups were pushing to place Russia … Read more
Botswana, Africa’s top diamond producer, sees a prolonged ban on Russian diamonds opening the way for synthetic gems to expand market share, the country’s minister told a mining conference on Monday. The United States, the world’s largest market for natural diamonds, imposed sanctions on Russia’s state-controlled Alrosa in April, aiming to cut off a source … Read more
Endiama, which holds the exclusive concession for diamond mining rights in Angola, has already flagged an almost one-third reduction in diamond output this year. Angola’s state-run diamond miner Endiama could face a hit to its operations as Western sanctions on Russia could delay supplies of parts and machinery, according to a government brochure. The government … Read more
Russia may buy an as yet undetermined amount of rough diamonds from sanctions-hit producer Alrosa through its state precious metals and gems repository Gokhran, the country’s Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Wednesday. The United States imposed sanctions on state-controlled Alrosa in April, complicating the Russian company’s operations in the global diamond market, with the … Read more
Exports of rough diamonds from Russia’s state-owned Alrosa mines have resumed to India, although tensions remain high over such consignments. Many Western nations are seeking to shut down Russia’s diamond trade with India by calling Russian diamonds conflict diamonds, or blood diamonds. Critics such as Cristina Villegas, director of the Mines to Markets program at … Read more
Analysts expect that the June meeting of the global diamond industry scheduled for Gaborone will not result in a broad sanctioning of the precious stones produced in Russia. Still, that has not stopped the United States from pushing harder, writes Staff Writer, MBONGENI MGUNIWhen the world’s diamond producers, their biggest customers, civil society groups monitoring … Read more
Alrosa, the world’s top diamond producer by output, has been hit by fresh sanctions imposed by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). The OFAC announced late on Thursday it had placed Alrosa on the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, which effectively kicks a sanctioned company out of the US … Read more
Major jewellers are ditching Russian diamonds after facing increased scrutiny over how Russia’s state-controlled diamond monopoly could fund Putin’s war on Ukraine. A host of high-profile international jewellers, including American brand Tiffany & Co, Swiss watch and jewellery-maker Chopard, Signet, the largest retailer of diamond jewellery, and Pandora, the world’s largest jeweller, have released statements … Read more
De Beers, the world’s top diamond producer by value, saw sales jump by 18% in the second cycle of 2022 compared to the same period last year, attesting to the industry’s consolidated recovery from the first pandemic-induced shutdowns. The Anglo American unit sold $650 million of diamonds between February 21 to February 25, down $10 … Read more
Alrosa’s rough-diamond prices have reached their highest level since late 2018, as scarcities have prevented the Russian miner from meeting strong demand. The company’s rough-price index, which tracks like-for-like valuations, jumped 22% year on year in the third quarter and rose 10% versus the previous three months, it reported Friday. While the diamond market’s recovery … Read more