Diamond News Archives
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(IDEX Online) - There is light at the end of the tunnel for the diamond industry, says WFDB acting president Yoram Dvash.
COVID-19 has become a fact of life, he tells members in a newsletter, but there is cause for optimism.
Mr Dvash (pictured) heads the World Federation of Diamond Bourses and is also president of the Israel Diamond Exchange.
He praises the two biggest diamond miners, Alrosa and De Beers, for their "responsible" policy of limiting production and offering more flexible terms to their buyers.
And he says the slow return to work in Surat, the world's cutting and polishing capital, has had a positive effect on the diamond pipeline.
After a washout first half of 2020, with trade down by up to 80 per cent, he identifies four reasons to be hopeful:...
- Diamond prices are for the most part holding steady, mainly due to shortages in various categories.
- Q3 2020 is seeing smaller export and import drops, with July showing around 50 per cent declines year over year.
- Manufacturers' profit margins have improved and are actually better than before the pandemic, as they buy only the rough they need to meet demand.
- China has shown strong demand with sales soaring after the lockdown and independent jewelers in the USA are reporting steady demand for jewelry to celebrate life-cycle events.
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(IDEX Online) - Alrosa today reported another month of weak sales, with rough and polished totaling just $35.8m for July, down 79 per cent on last year.
The Russian state-owned miner is widely reported to be seeking another rescue deal to sell up to $1bn of rough to Gokhran, the finance ministry's precious metals and gems repository.
Alrosa negotiated a similar deal, also for $1bn, during the 2008-9 global financial crisis, according to the Moscow-based Kommersant newspaper.
Sales for last month comprised $22.7m of rough and £13.2m of polished. The overall $35.8m total was up on April's rock bottom of just $15.6m. There was a slight bounce May to $40.1m, followed by a dip in June to $31.3m. Its sales in July 2019 were $170.5m.
Alrosa said it had been offering unprecedented flexibility to its long-term clients during "extremely challenging market conditions".
Deputy CEO Evgeny Agureev said: "In July, we successfully auctioned +10.8 carats' diamonds in Israel and Belgium. We also sold expensive rough on spot. As a result, the average realized price of gem-quality diamonds in July increased by 9x compared this year's average.
"As for the terms of the August trading session and the possibility of offering our clients an option to defer purchases, the decision has not been taken yet."
Pic shows Alrosa mining in Yakutia ...