Diamond News Archives

Those who focus on the U.S. national debt (and I’m one of them) keep wondering how long this debt levitation act can go on.

The U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio is at the highest level in history (106%), with the exception of the immediate aftermath of the Second World War. At least in 1945, the U.S. had won the war and our economy dominated world output and production. Today, we have the debt without the global dominance.

The U.S. has always been willing to increase debt to fight and win a war, but the debt was promptly scaled down and contained once the war was over. Today, there is no war comparable to the great wars of American history, and yet the debt keeps growing.

In a new Weekly Standard article, the celebrated James Grant of Grant’s Interest Rate Observer reviews not only the current debt and deficit situation but provides an overview of the U.S. national debt since George Washington and Alexander Hamilton.

Grant makes the point that the debt has been increased and decreased on a regular basis but never until today was there a view that the deficit didn’t matter and could be increased indefinitely.

He points out that it took the United States 193 years to accumulate its first trillion dollars of federal debt. And amazingly, that it will add that much in the current fiscal year alone.

Grant also describes how these historic debt management efforts have been bipartisan.

Republicans Harding and Coolidge reduced the debt; the Democrat Andrew Jackson actually eliminated the debt in 1836. Today there is bipartisan profligacy. The article lays out the big picture and the likelihood of a U.S. debt crisis sooner rather than later.

The U.S. budget...

(IDEX Online) – Lucapa Diamond Company and Bonas-Couzyn are to tender production from the Mothae mine in Lesotho in Antwerp.<?xml:namespace prefix = "o" ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /?>

Mothae is located in the diamond-rich Maluti Mountains within 5km of Letseng, the world’s highest US$ per carat kimberlite diamond mine.

Lucapa owns 70% of the high-value Mothae kimberlite project in Lesotho in partnership with the government of Lesotho (30%).

The inaugural sale from Mothae brings to market the most recent bulk samples from the mine and includes, among other things, an 89.77ct gem single, some IIA top white gems and several fancy colours, including small light pinks, as well as around 4,000cts of regular ROM product, Bonas-Couzyn said.

"This exciting new source will then come into mine commissioning and full production by the end of this year, ahead of regular ROM production tenders with Bonas-Couzyn in Antwerp in early 2019."

Viewings will take place from November 12 to November 16 in Bonas-Couzyn’s office in the Diamantclub Building.

The sale will close on November 19 at 3PM Antwerp (CET) time, and will take place via an online highest bid tender at www.mothaebids.com^[1]...

References

1. ^{^} www.mothaebids.com (www.mothaebids.com)

Russia’s Alrosa (MCX:ALRS) just recovered the first large gem-quality rough diamond from its Verkhne-Munskoe deposit, which recently launched operations in Western Yakutia.

In a press release, the world’s top diamond producer said the transparent round-shaped octahedron crystal with insignificant yellow hue was recovered from Zapolyarnaya pipe – one of four kimberlite pipes of the deposit.

The rock, whose approximate age is estimated in 350 million years, weighs 51.49 carats and measures 23 by 22 by 15 mm.

"It is the first rough diamond over 50 carats from Verkhnyaya Muna. We have just started mining here, so it is a very promising event evidencing of the good potential of the deposit,” said Alexander Makhrachev, Director of Udachny Mining and Processing Division, in the media brief. “Despite small inclusions and cracks, this stone is undoubtedly a gem-quality rough diamond that will bring to life one or several high-grade polished diamonds.”

Four kimberlite pipes have been explored so far at Verkhne-Munskoe. The deposit, which has a 20-year production life and is calculated to yield some 1.8 million carats of rough diamonds per year, will partly substitute suspended output at Alrosa's underground Mir mine.

The post Alrosa recovers large diamond from new Yakutia deposit appeared first on MINING.com....

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References

1. ^{^} Skip to main content (www.zerohedge.com)