Archive for the ‘Industry’ Category

A 5.16 carat, pear-shaped Fancy Vivid Blue diamond is expected to be sold for at least £4million at an Sothebys auction next month.  "The diamond's high and even saturation of brilliant sky-blue colour, internally flawless clarity and classic pear shape will undoubtedly spur intense bidding amongst discerning collectors from around the world," the auction house said in a statement. Blue diamond - rarest of gems The blue diamond – the rarest of all… Continue reading

Investigators believe an important clue has been found that may help recover the glittering haul from the world’s largest diamond robbery, reported The Sunday Times. Up to £350m in diamonds, cash and other valuables were stolen seven years ago from the Antwerp Diamond Centre in Belgium. Four gang members were jailed at the time but the diamonds have still not been found. The raid has been reconstructed in a new book, Flawless… Continue reading

The world's largest diamond producer, De Beers, fell $220m (£140m) into the red last year, the Guardian has reported. In a statement the group which controls about 40% of the rough diamond market, said: ‘In the consumer markets we believe global demand for diamond jewellery declined for the full year in the low single digits, although the fourth quarter showed an improved and positive trend on 2008. Demand remained strong in the… Continue reading

The world’s most famous ‘unseen’ diamond has been seen once again in Washington DC. The Wittelsbach-Graff Diamond was last publicly seen at the 1958 World Exhibition in Brussels. After that, the precious blue stone, originating in India, mysteriously disappeared. It was then bought at auction in 2008 by billionaire Laurence Graff (who appended his name to the diamond). "I've been privileged over the years to own some of the world's most important and… Continue reading

China is currently the world's second largest diamond market, according to IDEX Online. Xinhua news agency reported Chinese government figures show that imports through the Shanghai Diamond Exchange rose 16.4 percent to more than $1.5 billion in 2009. United States is the world's largets diamond market The United States is the world’s largest diamond market - importing $11.26 billion worth of polished diamonds in the first 11 months of 2009 - followed by China… Continue reading