Chroma Diamonds founded by Alexander Appels and Jan De Henau is a relatively new company in the Antwerp diamond district, which specializes in colored diamonds. Stymied by the relatively “subjective process of color grading”, the 2 have set out on a mission to develop a device that provides more objective measurements for the grading of colored stones.
The device will utilize AI gathering data points and becoming smarter with each new set of inputs. They believe with sufficient time the device would learn enough to be able to more accurately grade certain stones, especially in resolving cases where certain grading criteria place the value of diamond on the edge of a color category but not quite enough to satisfy it being classified in the next grade above.
“Customers come to us with high expectations. After all, the value of their diamond is determined by, among other things, the color and intensity of that color, and let it (partly) depend on the cut and the people in the grading office, we hear. Because it is they who assign the diamond an official color, and therefore also determine its value definitively,” explains Appels.
Though this idea is not new to the Diamond District the duo has taken things one step further receiving support from the innovation process of the City of Antwerp. They plan on using and testing the device in their own business first as proof-of-concept before taking it to the greater market.
German police seized large parts of the stolen treasures from the 2019 looting of Dresden’s famous “Green Vault.”
During a raid in Berlin in the early hours of Saturday, police special forces and public prosecutors found and secured 31 items representing a “significant part” of the stolen artifacts, authorities said.
In an initial inspection, investigators found that several pieces appeared to be intact, among them the hat decoration and star of the Polish Order of the White Eagle from the stolen diamond set.
The items were transferred to Dresden under the protection of special police forces, where they’ll be examined forensically and then by specialists from the Dresden State Art Collections to check their authenticity.
The Dresden incident was one of a number of heists carried out at German museums in recent years. In November, thieves broke into a museum in Bavaria and made off with nearly 500 ancient gold coins worth several million euros.
In 2020, a Berlin court convicted three men of stealing a 100-kilogram (220-pound) gold coin worth $4 million from a museum in the center of the German capital.
A pink-diamond necklace led the most recent jewelry auction at Phillips, smashing its high estimate to bring in $1.9 million following a “fierce” bidding battle.
The oval, 4.05-carat, fancy-intense-pink diamond pendant by Boodles was estimated at $800,000 to $1.2 million at the December 13 New York sale. It is one of eight lots in the top 10 that beat their presale high price tags.
In total, the sale garnered $7.4 million, with 81% of items on offer finding buyers.
“We are delighted to conclude the year on such a high note,” said Benoît Repellin, worldwide head of jewelry for Phillips. “With enthusiastic bidding across the globe — from Egypt, to Korea, to Brazil — the sale demonstrated the continued appeal for rare colored and colorless diamonds, as well as for exceptional signed pieces.”
A round cut-cornered rectangular modified brilliant-cut, 30.65-carat, fancy-intense-yellow diamond ring sold for $693,300, exceeding its $500,000 high estimate.
Drake isn’t afraid to fall in love, and now he’s got an insanely flashy piece of jewelry to prove it — a necklace with 42 engagement ring diamonds — for all the times he’s wanted to propose.
Celebrity Jeweler Alex Moss tells TMZ … Champagne Papi’s new piece is called “Previous Engagements,” a tribute to all the women Drizzy contemplated asking to marry him, but never went through.
In total, we’re told the piece’s 42 stones count for 351.38 carats in diamonds. On top of all the ice, it’s made using 18K white gold and was set using the eagle claw technique.
Alex tells us the entire thing took 14 months to complete and was built by hand in NYC … though he won’t reveal how much it cost.
Drake debuted it at Lil Baby’s birthday concert in Atlanta last Saturday at State Farm Arena.
42 may seem like a lot, but there’s always room to add more for The Certified Lover Boy.
An Indian court has found five manufacturers in Surat guilty of copyright infringement and the illegal use of Sarine Technologies’ software, the Israel-based company reported.
“The court’s ruling has made it clear that any company using unlicensed or pirated Advisor software is breaking the law,” said Sarine CEO David Block in a statement Sunday, referring to its rough-planning technology. “We intend to aggressively protect our IP [intellectual property] and will continue taking action against any entities involved in infringement.”
Sarine took legal action against several companies in and around the Indian manufacturing city of Surat in May. Court commissioners visited the premises of the alleged infringers on May 18, Sarine said at the time.
The court has also ordered the entities in question — Gopi Impex, Nirghay Impex, Pramukh Gems, Dhiren Diamonds and Bhumika Gems — to remove the infringing software from their computers, according to the company, which provides diamond-scanning equipment for the manufacturing industry. Rapaport News was unable to reach the alleged infringers for comment.
Canadian miner Lucara Diamond has announced that it expects to sell between $200 million to $230 million worth of diamonds from its Karowe mine in Botswana in 2023 – an increase over its previous forecast of $185-$215 million in 2022, IDEX Online reports.
Lucara also said it expects to sell 385,000 to 415,000 carats (up from 300,000 to 340,000 carats in 2022) and expects to recover 395,000 to 425,000 carats (an increase from 300,000 to 340,000 carats).
Recently, Lucara announced that it has extended its sales agreement with HB Trading to sell +10.8-carat rough diamonds from Karowe for another ten years. Lucara and HB partnered in 2020 to sell Karowe’s large, high-value diamonds “that have historically accounted for about 60% to 70% of its annual revenues,” according to a report by Rough & Polished.
The 303.10-carat Golden Canary fetched $12.4 million at Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels in New York on Wednesday, becoming the third most valuable yellow diamond ever sold at auction, the company reported.
The pear-shaped, fancy-deep-brownish-yellow stone is the world’s largest known internally flawless diamond. It is also the largest flawless or internally flawless diamond graded by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), Sotheby’s said Thursday. The auction house offered the piece without reserve, but predicted it would bring in more than $15 million.
The diamond was initially discovered in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in the early 1980s. Originally called the Incomparable Diamond, the stone was recut from its previous 407-carat shield shape to deepen the color and brighten the hue.
“The Golden Canary captivated me from the moment I saw it — with its monumental size, golden hue and impeccable clarity — it is truly an extraordinary diamond with immense presence,” said Quig Bruning, head of jewelry for the Americas at Sotheby’s.
Israel’s exports of polished diamond have shown positive growth over the past 11 months, a statement issued by Israeli Economic Ministry revealed yesterday.
According to the statement, the net rough diamond imports reached about $1.68 billion, recording an eight per cent decline compared to the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the net rough diamond exports reached $1.46 billion during the same period, recording a 9.5 per cent decline compared to the same period last year.
Last month, net Israeli exports of rough diamonds to the UAE reached about $10.7 million – about 14 per cent of the total Israeli exports of rough diamonds in November.
Israel imported rough diamond worth $25.7 million from the UAE – 21 per cent of the total Israeli imports of rough diamond.
Israel recently began exporting diamonds to Bahrain and the Ministry of Economy and Industry expects this market to grow next year.
The global diamond industry has faced massive interruptions as a result of Russia’s war on Ukraine. US sanctions on Russia, the world’s third largest diamond exporter, includes diamond trade.
Winston Chitando, Zimbabwe’s mines and mining development minister, said in an interview with the Sunday Mail newspaper quoted by IDEX Online that the country’s diamond sector will grow to $1 billion by the end of 2023.
Chitando said that Murowa Diamonds and the ZCDC (Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company) “were expanding their operations and would help bring total output to 7 million carats, up from 2 million in 2018.”
Chitando said: “Other countries produce quite a lot, but their production is mature . . . whereas Zimbabwe has a fairly rapidly growing industry. It is probably experiencing the biggest growth in the diamond industry in the world.”
In another report in Rough & Polished, Zimbabwe’s Finance minister Mthuli Ncube is quoted as saying that the mining sector is expected to grow by 10% this year, and that the government had issued 20 exploration prospecting orders (EPOs) to several companies this year. He also said that the mining sector “is expected to grow by 10.4% in 2023.”
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Every diamond we grade as part of our services is natural, untreated and from a recognized diamond producer.
We believe there is more to a diamond than its weight and appearance. We work only with natural diamonds, disclosed to us as compliant with the United Nations mandated World Diamond Council Kimberley Process – a foundational commitment to the modern diamond industry. Additionally, an assessment from De Beers Institute of Diamonds provides diamantaires with confidence in a report of each diamond’s 4Cs of carat, color, clarity and cut. Every diamond graded at De Beers Institute of Diamonds is given a unique inscription number, allowing the diamond details to be tracked and viewed on our website, for added peace of mind.
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Without the ability in instill confidence within the industry and directly the consumer, a diamond holds very little value. Empowering the industry with our expertise channeled into technology and grading allows De Beers to deliver the most reputable product on the market. Diamonds are so much more than just their unique beauty and De Beers Institute of Diamonds ensures their story remains as intact as their sparkle.
Alrosa CEO Sergey Ivanov is stepping down from the position, a Russian news outlet reported.
The executive has decided to resign before the termination of his contract, according to a Google-translated version of an RBC article. He might move into a role at Volga Group, which controls gas and petrochemicals assets, the report added, citing an unnamed source.
An Alrosa spokesperson declined to comment to Rapaport News on Sunday.
Ivanov joined the Russian diamond miner in the top job in 2017, succeeding Andrey Zharkov. Earlier this year, the US named Ivanov as a sanctioned person following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Las Vegas… Diamond market sentiment received a boost from the Las Vegas shows, which demonstrated robust US demand. However, polished prices declined amid a weak global economic outlook and a rise in inventory levels.
The RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI™) for 1-carat diamonds slid 1.8% in June but increased 7.4% between the beginning of the year and July 1.
RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI™)
June
1H 2022
Year on year July 1, 2021, to July 1 2022
RAPI 0.30 ct.
-1.0%
0.2%
-1.6%
RAPI 0.50 ct.
-1.6%
4.1%
5.0%
RAPI 1 ct.
-1.8%
7.4%
16.8%
RAPI 3 ct.
-0.8%
9.7%
22.2%
Trading in Las Vegas reflected jewelers’ strong liquidity after a profitable 2021. Activity slowed once the fairs ended and dealers headed for vacations at the beginning of July.
There were also renewed fears of a recession; the US economy shrank 1.6% in the first quarter, and the latest data showed inflation at 8.5% in May. Consumer confidence dropped 4.5 points in June to its lowest level since February 2021, according to The Conference Board.
Chinese demand was low as well following Covid-19 lockdowns in April and May. The lack of buyers meant local jewelers had sufficient inventory for the short term.
Polished inventory in the midstream grew in June. The number of diamonds listed on RapNet rose 4.3% during the month to 1.87 million as of July 1. The high volume came despite the Russian sanctions that limited Alrosa’s rough sales and took an estimated 30% of global production off the market. Russian rough shortages are expected to impact polished supply in the coming months; manufacturers have so far been working with goods from before Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Other miners are capitalizing on the new rough-market dynamic. De Beers’ June sales rose 36% year on year to $650 million after a price hike of 8% to 10% on smaller rough — a category Alrosa usually dominates.
We predict that traceable, ethical diamonds will sell at a premium to Russian diamonds as Alrosa goods reenter the market. While US jewelers are upbeat after the shows, there are political and economic headwinds that will likely disrupt the industry in the second half.
Rio Tinto has forecast a sharp drop in rough-diamond output for next year as the Diavik mine edges closer to depletion.
The company expects to produce between 3 million and 3.8 million carats from the Canadian deposit in 2023, it reported at an investor seminar Wednesday. That compares with a plan of 4.5 million to 5 million carats for this year.
The decrease is a result of the exhaustion of rough supply from some of Diavik’s major mining areas, a Rio Tinto spokesperson told Rapaport News. The mine, which employs 1,100 workers, is set to close in 2025.
“We’ve completed mining at the A21 pipe, which was the latest pipe opened in 2018,” the spokesperson explained. “We’re finishing surface mining, and also one of the underground parts of the mine is done, so this is part of the plan changes. There are four areas we are mining at the moment, and next year there will be two.”
Diavik, of which Rio Tinto is the sole owner, is currently the miner’s only operational diamond site. The company’s Argyle deposit, known for its fancy-pink diamonds, closed in November 2020. Meanwhile, an exploration partnership with Star Diamond is on hold as Rio Tinto considers an exit from the project.
