Diamond News Archives

Palladium was manipulated for years. It had the largest short position relative to its size, while physical demand rose inversely to decreasing supply. In 2018, demand became so large that it overwhelmed the shorts.

(IDEX Online) - Alrosa, Russia's state-owned miner, has named a 100-carat light yellow diamond after the country's COVID-19 vaccine.

It says the gem (pictured) is a 100.53-carat flattened octahedron recovered from alluvial deposits in Yakutia, in the far east of the country, and is a natural wonder -  like the vaccine.

Last September Sputnik V became the world's first approved coronavirus vaccine. It takes its name from the first Soviet space satellite, launched into space in 1957. 

 

"Rough diamonds of this size and color are true natural wonders. Therefore, we decided to name this outstanding crystal after the first Russian coronavirus vaccine, which is also a miracle created by our scientists," said Sergey Ivanov, Alrosa's CEO.

"The vaccine itself and the fact that it was developed so fast are both exceptional. This gives us hope getting back to life as usual in the foreseeable future."...

(IDEX Online) - The Gahcho Kue mine, in Canada, has yielded its largest diamond since operations began there more than four years ago.

The 157.38 carat gem, described as being of "of exceptional quality", will be sold later this month at a tender of special-size stones in Antwerp.

Canadian miner Mountain Province has named the gem Polaris after the North Star, because of its rare natural blue fluorescence.

The miner said it was a major morale boost after a year in which the industry had faced immense challenges.

Gahcho Kue, a joint venture between Mountain Province and De Beers Canada on the edge of the Arctic Circle, is currently not operating because of a Covid outbreak.

Polaris (pictured) is being offered for sale by the Bonas Group, with viewings from February 22 and bids closing on March 5.

Reid Mackie, Mountain Province's vice president diamond marketing, said: "We are thrilled to offer Polaris at our upcoming February sale. It is an extraordinary stone, recovered at the end of an extraordinary year."...

Gold does not directly conform to the majority of the most common valuation methodologies used for equities or bonds. Without a coupon or dividend, typical models based on discounted cash flows, expected earnings, or book-to-value ratios, struggle to provide an appropriate assessment for gold’s underlying value. This presented an opportunity for the World Gold Council to develop a framework to better understand gold valuation.