Gem Diamonds LTD has sold the 357 carat exceptional white diamond recovered from the Letšeng mine for $19.3 million USD.
Gem Diamonds owns 70% of the Letšeng mine in Lesotho and 100% of the Ghaghoo mine in Botswana which is producing the exceptional rough diamonds.
The 314 carat diamond recovered in May 2015 sold in June 2015, and the 357 carat diamond which sold on the Antwerp tender last week for $19.3 million.
Both rough diamonds achieved top prices in the current market showing price resilience of large top quality diamonds.
Producing four of the twenty largest white gem quality diamonds ever recorded, Letšeng mine is renowned as highest dollar per ct kimberlite diamond mine in the world.
De Beers which produces thirty percent of world rough diamonds has cut prices by 10 percent for the sight.
This comes after two reductions in its annual production output by 15 percent failed to slow slump in prices of rough.
Rough diamond prices have dropped 14 percent in some categories and are in their fifth consecutive quarterly loss, which is the longest in a decade.
De Beers cut the size of the sight to $250 million and reduced the prices by 9 percent, according to sight holders.
De Beers has also contributed tens of millions to a jewellery advertising campaign. Its advertising campaign will promote diamond jewellery in the U.S. and to Chinese consumers.
The world’s largest diamond producer of rough diamonds by value, De Beers has reduced prices for its rough diamond sight.
This is due to continued weakness in the polished diamond market this year and resulting softening of diamond prices.
De Beers took steps to cut rough diamond prices, after cutting rough production did not support demand.
Russian diamond miner Alrosa has also lowered diamond prices by six percent since January.
Lucara’s Karowe Diamond Mine in Botswana has recovered of a number of exceptional diamonds.
The mine is continuing to produce in line with expectations with the recovery of a spectacular 336 carat Type IIa diamond along with a 184 a 94 carat a 86 carat and a 12 carat pale pink diamond just for this week.
The Karowe Diamond Mine in Lucara has recovered 216 diamonds which have sold for more than $250,000 each. And twelve of these diamonds have sold for more than $5.0 million each.
Cristy Gems can no longer submit diamonds to the GIA for grading.
The laboratory suspects that the company along with four partner companies repeatedly submitted diamonds which were inscribed with pre-existing fake GIA report numbers.
The GIA said it was intentional conduct, because of the numerous times it has happened.
All laboratories must have DIAMOND on the report or certificate.
DIAMOND is used exclusively for diamonds of natural origin. In layman’s terms, if your diamond certificate or report does not state clearly DIAMOND IE: NATURAL DIAMOND on the certificate then is not compliant or working to Cibjo or IDC rules adopted by the ISO. This means the laboratory has not tested or proven the stone to be of natural origin.
MILAN, ITALY: JULY 27, 2015 – CIBJO has welcomed the publication of ISO International Standard 18323, entitled "Jewellery – Consumer confidence in the diamond industry," which specifies a set of permitted descriptors for the diamond industry that are designed to be understood by consumers. The new ruling by the International Standards Organisation explicitly defines a diamond as having been "created by nature" and further notes that "the denomination ‘diamond’ without further specification always implies ‘natural diamond.’"
The new ISO International Standard mirrors the definitions outlined in CIBJO’s Diamond Blue Book, which are aligned with those of the International Diamond Council (IDC). The Diamond Blue Book, the IDC Rules, and also the PAS 1048 documents, relating to terminology and classification of grading polished diamonds that were developed by CIBJO with the support of the German Standards Institute (DIN), were cited as the primary sources in the ISO International Standard’s bibliography.
See: how to read a DCLA certificate. DCLA diamond grading reports are only issued for natural untreated and unenhanced diamonds. Therefore every diamond report issued by the DCLA has the term NATURAL DIAMOND clearly noted at the top of the certificate.
De Beers’s the world’s largest rough producer felt the pain, when only $300 million of the $450 million estimated sight was taken up by their sightholders. This leaves 30 percent of the rough on offer on the table.
Anglo has previously counted on diamond revenues to offset a collapse in the price of other metals and minerals it mines. Anglo may cut the company’s dividend for the first time since 2009 according to analysts.
This is an indication of turmoil in the $80 billion diamond industry as traders, cutters and polishers suffer from a poor liquidity and weaker demand for jewellery.
Producers in India, where 90 percent of rough diamonds are cut and polished, may halt imports over the supply glut.
Update: Report sightholders may have refused 35%-50% at July sight which may be as low as $200M.
The diamond sector in Surat is experiencing rising losses and payment defaults.
This is causing uncertainty for workers in India’s diamond capital.
It is estimate 70 to 80 percent of workers are affected by retrenchment, pay cuts and reduced working hours.
To address this crisis the diamond producers are considering holding the import of rough diamonds for a month or two, Diamond producers and dealers would hold a vote on the matter in Surat.
Global demand for both rough and polished diamonds has taken a severe down turn, with prices of rough diamonds falling up to nine percent in a year.
Pictures of the Spectacular Fancy Yellow Diamond Polished by Graff Diamonds have been released.
Laurence Graff, the founder of the international luxury diamond and jewellery firm that bears his name, purchased the 299 ct rough diamond from the Letšeng mine in the Southern African kingdom of Lesotho.
Graff’s latest masterpiece named “The Golden Empress,” was polished into the 132.55 Cts stone an extremely rare diamond is a Fancy Intense yellow cushion cut,
The diamond is among the largest and rarest in the world. Only one in 10,000 diamonds discovered are classified as fancy coloured such as this yellow diamond.
Shmuel Schnitzer IDE’s president, said The Israel Diamond Exchange will appoint arbitrators deal with transactions of treated diamonds certified determined by the Gemmological Institute of America (GIA).
He explained that the bourse decided it would enable arbitration hearings to restore business confidence and given the lack of any significant updates in the GIA’s investigation.
The GIA issued a laboratory alert on May 12 recalling diamond grading reports for diamonds suspected of having undergone a ‘temporary’ colour treatment.
The GIA voided reports which GIA said had undergone undisclosed temporary colour treatment, and offered free of charge to regrade the stones in question.
The IDE banned members from trading the stones using the old GIA reports.
