Diamond News Archives

A textbook in my Master of Psychology program theorized that most things in life come down to core drives—food, shelter, sex, etc. Throw in Freud’s pain and pleasure principals and this is supposedly what drives everything we do.

We had a good time poking fun of simplistic theories as to what motivates people. Human emotions and motivations are complex.

Except when it comes to money.

Our wallets are more often than not ruled by our most primal emotions, greed and fear, dating back to the days we huddled in caves. Despite all our sophistication and modern technology, most investors still think like a caveman/cavewoman when it comes to investing.

And what’s happening in the markets right now is so clear that even a caveman can see it.

See if you think 2019 will go down as the year one should have sold stocks and bought gold…

“Gold Good, Stocks Bad”

We read a lot of news around here, and while it isn’t obvious to most mainstream investors yet, there is a definite undercurrent in the markets right now. This trend shows that investors are moving away from stocks and toward gold. And not just by a little bit.

I put the different categories into boxes, and compared Then to Now. What message do you get from all this?

First up, gold funds and other holdings.

Next, trading volumes on gold around the world.

Third, central bank gold activity.

Last, here’s what stock insiders and others are doing right now.

As you can see, interest in gold is growing, while interest in stocks is fading. If I didn’t know anything else and just looked at this data,...

(IDEX Online) - Diamond producer Alrosa today (Thursday) reported that its Q3 2019 diamond production hit 12.1 million carats, with sales totaling 6.4 million carats by volume and $0.6 billion by value. 

The miner said the increase in output - up 24 percent quarter-over-quarter and 15 percent year-over-year, was due to the launch of production at new deposits and the expansion of existing areas of operation. 

For the first nine months of the year, production reached 29.7 million carats (up 12 percent year-over-year).

Alrosa said third-quarter diamond sales fell 24 percent over the previous quarter and 37 percent year-over-year to $601 million. 

By volume, sales dropped 23 percent over the previous quarter (down 5 percent year-over-year) to 6.4 million carats, including 4.3 million carats of gem-quality diamonds (down 28 percent quarter-over-quarter and 8 percent year-over-year). 

The decline is because of falling consumer demand, which has led to a reduction in stocking by cutters and retailers.

Sales for the first nine months of the year totaled $2,386 million (down 34 percent year-over-year). By volume, sales declined 13 percent year-over-year to 25.3 million carats. Sales of gem-quality diamond also declined, dropping 14 percent year-over-year.

In terms of prices, average realized prices for gem-quality diamonds increased 4 percent quarter-over-quarter (down 32 percent year-over-year) to $135 per carat. 

There is some brighter new going forward. Alrosa also reported that the second half of the third quarter saw an upward trend in rough diamond sales which it says creates a basis for market recovery....

(IDEX Online) - CIBJO (the World Jewellery Confederation) has published a report by its Ethics Commission ahead of its Congress in Bahrain in November.

Weaving it all together: an ethical status report at the end of 2019 covers topics such as the increasing number of international conventions with which members of the jewelry industry are expected to comply and recommended processes of disclosure.

"Responsible business standards being applied in the jewelry industry are meshing further and further with those used internationally, and with frameworks that govern other industries around the globe," writes Tiffany Stevens, who heads the Commission. 

"It is important that jewelry industry companies fully understand their responsibilities under these complex sets of expectations, and they communicate them effectively and directly with their supply-chain partners and ultimately the consumer."

This is the sixth in a series of reports released in the run up to the CIBJO conference, which will be held in Manama, Bahrain on November 18-20....