Argyle Diamonds – Page 3 – The Diamond Certification Laboratory of Australia (DCLA)

Double-Digit Growth in Number of Bids at Rio Tinto Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender

The number of bidders at the recent 2019 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender saw double-digit growth with buyers vying to get their hands on some of the last diamonds to come from the Argyle diamond mine. The mine is scheduled to close at the end of 2020.

While Rio Tinto does not disclose the value of winning bids, it said that over the past 19 years, the value of diamonds sold at Tender has appreciated over 500 percent, outperforming all major equity markets.

The most valuable lot in the collection, the Argyle Enigma, a 1.75-carat modified radiant fancy red diamond, was won by Australian based Argyle Pink Diamonds partner Blue Star & Kiven Diamonds who also won the 1.37-carat oval-shaped fancy vivid purplish pink Argyle Verity.

“No other diamonds on earth match the rarity and provenance of Argyle pink diamonds. To have acquired two of the last Argyle pink diamonds to ever be unearthed, and one of the few Fancy Red Argyle diamonds in existence is the ultimate privilege,” said Ron Kiven, director of Blue Star & Kiven Diamonds.

This year, Rio Tinto also offered The Argyle Pink Everlastings Collection comprising smaller Argyle pink and red diamonds totaling 211 carats. The entire collection was purchased by Hong Kong fancy colored diamond specialist Kunming Diamonds.

“This is a dream come true, a rare opportunity to acquire a once in a lifetime collection of pink and red Argyle diamonds,” said Kunming Diamonds director Harsh Maheshwari. “With the imminent closure of the Argyle mine, a collection such as this deserves to be showcased to the world and we look forward to announcing our plans at a later date.”

Source: IDEX

Rio Tinto to Sell Largest Argyle Vivid Pink

Rio Tinto will offer a 3.14-carat, vivid pink diamond at its 2018 tender, the largest stone of its color in the history of the annual sales event.

The emerald-cut Argyle Alpha (pictured, third from left) is one of 63 rare pink, red and violet diamonds — weighing a combined 51.48 carats — featuring in this year’s Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender. It is part of a collection of six “hero” diamonds the miner will offer at the sale.

“Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine is the world’s only source of these highly coveted pink, red and violet diamonds, and we expect considerable interest in this year’s collection,” Rio Tinto CEO Jean-Sébastien Jacques said Thursday. “The combination of strong demand and extremely limited world supply continues to support significant value appreciation for Argyle pink diamonds.”

This year’s tender, which the company has called Magnificent Argyle, also includes the Argyle Muse, an oval-cut, 2.28-carat stone, which is the largest purplish-red diamond ever offered at the tender, and came from a 7.39-carat rough. A second diamond, cut from the same stone, will also be up for sale.

The other hero diamonds include the square-radiant-shaped, 1.29-carat, fancy vivid purplish-pink Argyle Maestro; the princess-shaped, 1.57-carat, fancy dark grey-violet Argyle Alchemy; the Argyle Odyssey, a round brilliant, fancy intense pink stone weighing 2.08 carats; and the radiant-shaped Argyle Mira, a 1.12-carat fancy red.

Rio Tinto will unveil the gems at a world exclusive preview in Sydney, and will also showcase them in Hong Kong and New York. Bidding for the diamonds closes on October 10.

The company held its first Argyle Pink Diamond Tender in 1984.

Source: diamonds.net

Israel Gives $284M Boost to Diamond Trade

The Israeli government has pledged $284 million (NIS 1 billion) to guarantee bank loans to diamond companies in an effort to ease the trade’s severe credit difficulties.

A lack of credit is stifling growth, especially among the smaller firms that constitute about 70% of the Israeli trade, according to a special committee set up to investigate the sector’s challenges.

The team — led by Naama Kaufman-Pass, deputy director-general of the nation’s Ministry of Economy and Industry — released its findings earlier this month, highlighting several ways in which the industry had hit a crisis.

Banks’ perception of the diamond sector as high-risk has led to a decline in total lending to the Israeli trade from $2.5 billion in 2008 to about $1 billion last year, the committee said in its report. Financial institutions are also refusing to accept dealers’ inventory as collateral, while competition from India and Belgium has added further damage to Israel’s market position.

To this end, the government fund will back companies’ borrowing, meaning that if they fail to repay a loan to a bank, the state will pay. While the committee submitted the policy to Eli Cohen, minister of industry and economy, as a recommendation, the lawmaker said the government was set to go ahead with the program.

“We have decided to allocate another billion shekels over the next five years to the diamond sector through credit guarantees,” Cohen told an audience at the International Diamond Week in Israel last week.

In addition, the committee suggested the government provide money for the bourse’s newly launched innovation laboratory, put cash into bringing more diamond buyers to Israel, support efforts to develop e-commerce opportunities, and contribute to other projects to boost the industry.

“The committee identified the main hurdles in small businesses’ activities in the sector, and its recommendations offer a comprehensive response to its needs,” Kaufman-Pass said.

The diamond trade is an important segment of the Israeli economy, representing about 13% of total exports, and employing about 9,500 people, according to the report. However, the 2008 global financial crash led to a 27% slump in Israel’s polished-diamond exports between that year and 2016, with the Chinese market slump in 2015 also denting demand.

“Implementing the committee’s conclusions, alongside other steps, is essential, considering the crisis the sector has been through,” Cohen added in a statement. “Their purpose is to provide new tools to help deal with challenges in the trade and to ease regulation, thereby growing both production and exports.”

Shay Rinsky, director-general of the Ministry of Economy and Industry, set up the committee in September to delve into issues of credit and growth in the diamond trade and examine how to bring the industry forward.

Source: diamonds.net

Fancy Colour Diamond Price Index Climbs Slightly In Q3

The Fancy Colour Diamond Index for the third quarter of 2017 indicates a slight rise overall of 0.2 percent over Q2 2017, for yellow, pink and blue fancy colour diamonds in all sizes and saturations.

Moreover, the index shows that in Q3 prices of fancy blue and pink colour diamonds appreciated 0.4 percent and 0.3 percent respectively. Similar to Q1 2017 trends, the strongest performing price categories during Q3 2017 were fancy intense and fancy vivid blue diamonds across all carat sizes.

In Q3 2017, fancy yellow diamond prices declined by 0.1 percent, the lowest price decrease for the category since Q3 2016. There was price stability across most other fancy colour diamond categories, continuing the trend in fancy colour diamond pricing patterns during 2016 and early 2017.

On a year-on-year basis, when compared to Q3 2016, the Fancy Colour Diamond Index is slightly down by 0.2 percent, with fancy blues up 4.7 percent and fancy yellows and fancy pinks down 2.5 percent and 0.6 percent, respectively. Compared to the same period in 2015, the Fancy Colour Diamond Index is up 0.7 percent with fancy blues and fancy pinks up 8.1 percent and 1.2 percent respectively, and fancy yellows down 4.1 percent.

The Fancy Colour Diamond Index is published by the non-profit Fancy Colour Research Foundation (FCRF), and tracks pricing data for yellow, pink and blue fancy colour diamonds in three key global trading centers – Hong Kong, New York and Tel Aviv.

FCRF Advisory Board Chairman Eden Rachminov said: “As far as supply is concerned, 2017 and the year before were record low years for blue fancy colour diamond production from mines. The majority of the blues that are coming into the market are pre-owned stones. Manufacturers have seen a significant drop in availability across all sizes and qualities, and consequently prices have continued to increase. Going forward, the market will have to adjust to a lower “new normal” supply level for blue fancy colour and pinks in the high saturations levels.”

Source: idexonline

37 carat Pink Diamond Up for Sale

Sotheby’s Auctioneers announced the upcoming auction of the Raj Pink diamond.

Weighing 37.30 carats the Pink diamond is the largest Fancy Intense Pink Diamond, according to Sotheby’s.

The Pink Diamond will feature at the auction house’s Magnificent Jewels in Geneva next month, and is estimated to fetch $20 million to $30 million USD.

The Original Rough Diamond was studied for over a year before the master cutter finished the polished Raj Pink Modified Cushion Brilliant cut

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De Beers Raises Marketing Budget to USD $140M

De Beers marketing spend this years is more than $140 million, This is the biggest De Beers push in a decade.

The marketing will focus on increasing consumer demand for diamond jewellery in US, China and Indian markets.

The De Beers brands, Forevermark and De Beers Diamond Jewellers. Will receive the most funding, But Debeers will also increase its contributions to the Diamond Producers Association and India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council.

Stephen Lussier, De Beers’ executive vice president of marketing and CEO of Forevermark. Said the consumer expenditure for diamond jewellery over the past five years collectively has been the highest on record. and this made the outlook positive.

2.11 carat Everglow Fancy Red Argyle Diamond

Polished into a radiant-cut and rated as VS2 clarity.

The diamond named the Argyle Everglow, was revealed in New York as part of the 2017 Argyle Pink Diamonds Tender.

Red Diamonds are the rarest of colours. An very small percentage of the world’s mined diamonds are classified and graded as Fancy Red even less over one carat.

The origin of the colour of pink and red in diamonds is the result of an atomic misalignment in the lattice of the diamond, This affects the way light is refracted through the stone.