“The government has approved amendments to the Tax Code, said Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev
Alrosa Rough Diamond
According to media reports quoted by Rough & Polished, Russia’s Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseev said during the Cheboksary Economic Forum that the government of the Russian Federation “approved the introduction of a zero VAT rate on rough and polished diamonds.”
“The government has approved amendments to the Tax Code, which provide for the introduction of a zero VAT rate on rough and polished diamonds,” he said on the sidelines of the Cheboksary Economic Forum.
This decision, he reportedly added, “will facilitate growth in demand for investment diamonds within Russia.”Credit: Alrosa
ussia condemned what it called a push to “politicise” its diamonds over the conflict in Ukraine and said attempts to question its compliance with the international diamond certification scheme were “totally unfounded” and “far-fetched”.
The Kimberley Process, a coalition of governments, the diamond industry and civil society responsible for certifying diamonds as conflict-free, is split over a push by Ukraine and others to expand its definition of conflict diamonds to include those funding aggression by states.
The KP Civil Society Coalition (CSC) and some member states sought to discuss whether Russia’s diamonds were helping to fund the war in Ukraine during a KP meeting in Botswana last week.
“The Russian Federation absolutely condemns the orchestrated attempts of CSC, backed by absolute minority of some Western participants, to politicize the work of the Kimberley Process by deliberately distorting or even openly replacing its basic principles,” Russia’s finance ministry said in an emailed statement. It did not specify which principles it felt were being distorted or replaced.
The CSC did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
The KP defines conflict diamonds as those that fund rebel movements seeking to overthrow legitimate governments, a narrow definition that many have sought to widen since the KP was founded in 2003.
Russia, which was KP chair last year, has “championed” work on revising the definition of conflict diamonds for the past five years, the finance ministry said, and it is committed to continuing talks on the definition.
“We therefore call on our opponents to refrain from further speculative accusations, abstain from political demagoguery and concentrate on the substantive work of the KP,” the finance ministry said.
The KP makes all decisions by consensus and the rift over Russia and Ukraine could jeopardise its effectiveness.
Botswana, Africa’s top diamond producer, sees a prolonged ban on Russian diamonds opening the way for synthetic gems to expand market share, the country’s minister told a mining conference on Monday.
The United States, the world’s largest market for natural diamonds, imposed sanctions on Russia’s state-controlled Alrosa in April, aiming to cut off a source of revenue for Moscow after its February invasion of Ukraine.
Alrosa, the world’s largest producer of rough diamonds, accounted for about 30% of global output in 2021.
Botswana’s Minister of Minerals and Energy Lefoko Moagi said the ban on Russia diamonds might push prices up to the benefit of rival producers but he also said the gap would be hard to fill.
“We see the 30% gap that will be left by the ban being plugged by something else that is not natural. And for us that will be a challenge,” he said.
Jacob Thamage, head of Botswana’s Diamond Hub, said uncertainty over the Ukraine conflict makes it difficult for Botswana and other natural diamond miners to fill the supply gap as ramping up operations requires significant investment.
“You don’t want to invest a lot of money to up-scale and then the war ends the next day,” Thamage said. “We also see the higher prices pushing consumers to substitutes such as the synthetics and this can cause problems for us if we cede the market to unnatural stones.”
Sales at Debswana, a joint venture between Anglo American unit De Beers and Botswana’s government, accounts for almost all of Botswana diamonds exports. These stood at $3.466 billion in 2021 compared with $2.120 billion in 2020.
Thamage also fears that consumers might start to shun natural diamonds due to traceability issues.
“There is an increased fear that buyers of diamonds will begin to treat all natural diamonds as conflict diamonds and therefore shift to unnatural diamonds,” he said.
Alrosa canceled its last sale in April and is unlikely to sell any large volumes again this month
Prices are surging in some corners of the rough-diamond market, as sanctions on one of the world’s two giant miners ripple through the supply chain. In the past, the industry could turn to behemoth De Beers to crank out extra gems when supply ran tight — but not this time.
The price of a small rough diamond, the type that would end up clustered around the solitaire stone in a ring, has jumped about 20% since the start of March, according to people familiar with the matter. The reason: Diamond cutters, polishers and traders are struggling to source stones after the US levied sanctions on De Beers’s Russian rival, Alrosa PJSC, which accounts for about a third of global production.
For most of the modern history of diamonds, this is the sort of situation where De Beers could have tapped its vast stockpiles or simply fired up latent mining capacity. Little more than 20 years ago, its safes in London held stocks of diamonds worth perhaps as much as $5 billion.
Those days are now long gone. The company only carries working inventory stocks and its mines are running at full tilt. There is little chance of material increases in supply before 2024, when an expansion at its flagship South African mine will be completed.
“It’s very difficult to see us bringing on any new production,” Chief Executive Officer Bruce Cleaver said in an interview in Cape Town. “Thirty percent of supply being removed isn’t sustainable.”
De Beers also produces relatively few of the type of diamonds Alrosa specializes in: the small and cheap gems that surround a larger center-point stone or are used in lower-end jewelry sold in places like Walmart or Costco.
For many in the sector, that means growing shortages unless Alrosa and its trade buyers can find a work around.
Alrosa canceled its last sale in April and is unlikely to sell any large volumes again this month, the people said. It’s uncertain when the company will be able to sell normally again, they said, even as the company, banks and buyers look for solutions.
Exports of rough diamonds from Russia’s state-owned Alrosa mines have resumed to India, although tensions remain high over such consignments.
Many Western nations are seeking to shut down Russia’s diamond trade with India by calling Russian diamonds conflict diamonds, or blood diamonds.
Critics such as Cristina Villegas, director of the Mines to Markets program at Pact, a development NGO, was quoted by the India-phobic London based Guardian as saying: “These are objectively conflict diamonds: they’re funding an armed conflict against a peaceful neighbour, by a state actor.” Villegas was silent about the flood of cash going to Russia by oil and gas purchases from European countries.
Analysts expect that the June meeting of the global diamond industry scheduled for Gaborone will not result in a broad sanctioning of the precious stones produced in Russia. Still, that has not stopped the United States from pushing harder, writes Staff Writer, MBONGENI MGUNI When the world’s diamond producers, their biggest customers, civil society groups monitoring the industry and others, meet in Gaborone in June to discuss issues affecting the image of the precious stones, Russia will be the proverbial elephant in the room.
The world’s biggest producer of rough diamonds by volume is due to enter the third month of its invasion of Ukraine next week, with recent mounting claims of civilian casualties and atrocities, including the discovery of mass graves.
The Kimberley Process, which groups the producers, markets, civil society and in fact accounts for 99.9% of the global diamond trade, meets in Gaborone between June 20 and 24, as Botswana is chairing the group for this year. The Kimberley Process (KP) was established nearly 20 years ago to clean up the diamond industry by certifying that all trade does not involve conflict or ‘blood diamonds’.
Conflict or blood diamonds have generally been taken to mean stones mined for the purpose of funding rebel group campaigns against legitimate governments, a definition that has meant the KP’s focus has been on war-torn Africa.
The debate within the KP to expand the definition to include vices such as human rights violations has been ongoing for years, but Russia’s bloody invasion of Ukraine has raised the urgent question of what constitutes conflict or blood diamonds. Those monitoring the KP don’t expect any sudden changes to the definition in June.
Hans Merket, a researcher at International Peace Information Service, which is a KP member, explains.
“Following several failed reform attempts, the Kimberley Process still looks at conflict through a 20-year-old lens,” Merket wrote in a report last week.
“This narrow definition has over the years led the KP to ignore various cases where public or private security forces, and not rebels, were inflicting violence and conflict to control diamond mining areas.
“It is therefore highly unlikely that the KP would consider action on a matter that differs even more from a scenario where rebels control diamond mines.”
He adds: “Decision-making in the KP is based on consensus, implying that no votes are cast and decisions are only taken if none of the 56 participants expresses disagreement.
“Even if Russia would in this case not be allowed to participate in decision-making, KP membership includes various countries that are unlikely to support KP scrutiny of Russian diamonds, such as China, the United Arab Emirates and India.”
But are diamonds actually funding Russia’s war effort?
Merket points out the linkages. Russia’s diamond mining is led by a mega-corp known as Alrosa. The Russian government owns 33% shares in Alrosa and, according to Merket, the group’s CEO, Sergej Sergejevitsj Ivanov, is not only part of Vladimir Putin’s inner circle but was also one of the first oligarchs targeted US sanctions.
“The Russian Federation shares in Alrosa’s profits,” writes Merket. “In 2021 this profit amounted to $1.1 billion (and) in Putin’s own words this ‘gives serious revenues to the federal and regional budget’. Alrosa has also reportedly directly funded the military previously, with reports that the group has paid significant amounts over the years to “increase the combat readiness of Russian submarines”.
According to Merket, newsletters from Alrosa indeed reveal that group engaged in a sponsorship agreement with the B-871 combat submarine in 1997, committing to “maintain the ship in a combat-ready condition”. Russia does not only generate revenues from diamonds as a shareholder but also directly buys and sells diamond production from Alrosa to manage global supply and pricing.
Last year, according to Merket, the state-run minerals trader known as Gokhran held six auctions garnering $225 million. Diamonds are particularly important for Moscow, given that existing sanctions have largely driven Russia out of the global financial system. The precious stones are an increasingly important source of foreign currency for Russia, whose major revenue earners such as gas and oil have been squeezed out of the market.
The US and its partners in the West quickly realised the importance of diamonds in the arsenal of sanctions against Russia, imposing numerous measures from February.
However, because Russian diamonds can still be traded through ‘sympathetic’ or neutral markets such as India and China, it is at the Kimberley Process where the flows to Moscow can be effectively plugged. And the US is focussing its efforts on lobbying KP partners, even if sanctions from the organisation would be unprecedented.
“We are engaged very proactively with partner nations and allies thinking about appropriate actions that could be taken in this respect,” Joshua Mater, senior sanctions coordinator in the US Department of State told Mmegi.
Mater was briefing a Foreign Press Centre virtual press tour on corruption, which ended recently. He explained that the US understood the limitations under the KP.
“The Kimberley Process itself is a multi-lateral body, which is consensus-based decision-making. “And of course, Russia is a member of that multi-lateral body.
“So, decisions that are coming out of that pursuant to sanctions or other types of deterrent regulations can often be extremely challenging to get adopted within the context of that organisation itself.
“But I think all members do recognise the importance and issue of the situation, especially in Ukraine, that’s ongoing right now.”
Mater added: “It may not be within the Kimberley Process itself, but it may be within other sanctions tools and other tools that are available to the US government that can get after these particular industries.”
The US State Department is also facing pressure from within the country over the Russian diamonds.
A group of 11 members of Congress recently wrote to the department demanding tougher action against Russian diamonds. Specifically, the congresspeople want a tightening of the existing sanctions so that they cover polished diamonds which have their origin in Russia.
At present, the US sanctions only cover Russian rough diamonds, meaning these can still be sold into centres such as Dubai, India and China for polishing before being sold forward to the US market.
“As it stands at this time, a diamond can be mined by an Alrosa subsidiary, polished or cut in India or another country, and sold to the United States without any prohibition, making a profit for the Russian government,” the politicians wrote.
“The February 24 sanctions that listed Alrosa only blocked debt and equity transactions, making a small dent in Russia’s oversized stake in the global diamond trade.
“Although an important initial step, along with the designation of Alrosa’s CEO, these have yet to impede trade and revenues that eventually reach the Kremlin.”
Experts have said broadening the scope of the US’s diamonds to include the polished variety would help squeeze Russia, but that would require the cooperation of diamond manufacturers and retailers in ‘Russo-sympathetic’ or neutral countries such as India and China.
The US has other arrows in its quiver against Russian diamonds, but many are limited and have significant loopholes.
“If diamonds are being mined or sold under circumstances that violate laws that could be prosecuted in the United States like money laundering with a corruption object, it may be possible for us to take action against the profits that are earned through the sales, whether by Ukrainians, Russians or others,” Mary Butler, chief of the US Justice Department’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section (International) told Mmegi.
“And so, I don’t want to eliminate the possibility that the corruption itself linked to the mining or sale of diamonds couldn’t be addressed.
“At the same time, a failure to abide by the Kimberley Process outcomes is probably not a basis for a US law violation.”
The US also is able to impose criminal sanctions for violations or evasion of sanctions. People who assist support financially, or with services the evasion of sanctions can face criminal liability in the United States that can lead to forfeiture. The US is also able to use civil confiscation as a basis to forfeit assets linked to sanctions evasion.
The network of laws however falls shy of preventing Russia from reaping the benefits of its diamond trade, particularly the lucrative foreign currency inflows that come with it.
The complications mean the KP remains the most appropriate platform for the world to make a decision on stopping diamonds from funding Russia’s war effort.
While Merket does not expect the KP to make any meaningful move on Russia when it meets in June, the Gaborone meeting could set off some cataclysmic events within the organisation.
“While many in the KP may want to ignore the matter, the Russian diamond controversy will considerably impact the process,” the researcher says.
“The geopolitical crisis and the opposing views on how the KP should deal with it will exacerbate the stalemate that has been hindering progress since the KP’s inception.
“It can also plunge the KP into an existential crisis, with a risk of implosion.”
According to Merket, increased friction within the KP is already emerging “as Russia chairs two of the six KP working bodies, both of which carry considerable political and strategic clout”. The KP, long accustomed to acting against smaller, African members, whose conflict diamonds comprise a small percentage of the global trade, is suddenly faced with tough decisions on a major producer responsible for a third of global supply.
“The fact that Russian diamonds present one-third of the global diamond supply may lead an increasing number of KP participants as well as civil society and industry observers to question whether they can continue being part of – and invest considerable time and resources in – a process that entrusts and legitimises this flow with KP conflict-free certificates,” Merket.
The US and other Western parties fired initial salvos at the Russians at the KP level, during a recent engagement hosted by the United Nations in New York.
More sparks are expected in Gaborone, but for now, the host nation and chairperson, are not taking a stand on the matter.
Diamond Hub coordinator, Jacob Thamage, who is effectively handling Botswana’s chairmanship of the KP, has reportedly told the KP Civil Society Coalition that any move or debate on Russia would have to be moved by a participant.
The global diamond industry reaches its moment of truth in Gaborone in June.
Alrosa, the world’s top diamond producer by output, has been hit by fresh sanctions imposed by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
The OFAC announced late on Thursday it had placed Alrosa on the Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list, which effectively kicks a sanctioned company out of the US banking system and bans its trade with Americans.
The measure against the Russian state-owned diamond miner seeks to cut off additional sources of revenue for Moscow, the government agency said.
It also affects any entities in which Alrosa has a 50% interest or more, either directly or indirectly.
The company’s customers well as other counterparties must stop all dealings with the state-controlled Russian miner by May 7, Treasury said.
Shares in the company collapsed on the news, closing nearly 13% lower on Friday trading in Moscow.
Alrosa and its chief executive Sergei S. Ivanov were included in the first wave of restrictions announced by Washington, which restricted the company’s ability to raise new debt and equity in the US.
“These actions, taken with the Department of State and in coordination with our allies and partners, reflect our continued effort to restrict the Kremlin’s access to assets, resources, and sectors of the economy that are essential to supplying and financing Putin’s brutality,” Treasury said in the statement.
The European Union and the UK have also imposed sanctions on the miner following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Diamonds are one of Russia’s top ten non-energy exports by value, with exports in 2021 totalling over $4.5 billion, it noted.
Alrosa is responsible for 90% of Russia’s diamond output and 28% of global supply, with 32.4 million carats produced in 2021 and sales topping $4 billion thanks mainly to consumer demand from the US.
Loopholes Experts have noted the sanctions against the miner carry a significant loophole. Russia’s rough diamonds are sent to another country — usually India — where they are polished and cut, which makes them the product of that nation in the global market.
Another issue is that diamonds of various origins are often mixed once polished, which can make it more difficult for companies that independently vow to stop buying Russian goods.
The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC), the leading standards organization of the global jewellery and watch industry, took steps into that direction in early April and suspended Alrosa’s membership.
“Fundamentally, we remain focused on RJC’s purpose, which is to ensure all jewellery is responsibly sourced,” the group’s char David Bouffard said in the statement.
World’s top diamond miner Alrosa hit by US sanctions The main markets for Alrosa, which employs about 32,000 people, are the US and Asia (Photo: Dmitry Amelkin, Transformation Director of Alrosa’s Polishing Division. Courtesy of Alrosa | Twitter. ) US-based jewellers Tiffany & Co. and Signet Jewelers said in March they would no longer buy new diamonds mined in Russia.
Alrosa withdrew in March from the Natural Diamond Council (NDC), a market alliance of the world’s leading producers of precious stones. By doing so, the company not only stepped down from the board, but it also cut all financial contributions.
The Mirny, Sakha-based miner also has a 41% stake in Angolan diamond production firm Catoca, which is not affected by the latest US sanctions given the OFAC.
While the full effects of the sanctions on the already undersupplied global rough diamonds market are not yet clear, the Antwerp World Diamond Centre (AWDC) has said there was a chance the restrictions could prove counterproductive.
“It is a blow that should hurt Russia but there is a chance that we do more damage to ourselves,” spokesman Tom Neys told Belgian newspaper Gazet van Antwerpen. “The Russians can easily trade their diamonds with non-EU countries and outside the US.”
The diamond jewelry industry is going into the year with diamond supply at historically low levels, estimated by Bain & Company at 29 million carats in 2021. “Upstream inventories declined ~40%, driven by high demand and slow production recovery, and are near the minimal technical level,”
US President Joe Biden has issued an executive order prohibiting the import of “nonindustrial” diamonds originating in Russia.
The measures, which the White House announced on Friday, follow Russia’s continued war in Ukraine and build on earlier US sanctions outlawing debt and equity transactions with Alrosa and its CEO, Sergey Ivanov. Those previous rulings did not constitute an outright ban on shipping Russian goods into America.
The latest order will affect goods from Russian miner Alrosa, which supplies around 30% of global rough supply by volume. Biden has also prohibited the export of luxury goods from the US to Russia.
On the same day, Signet Jewelers — an Alrosa contract client — announced it had “suspended business interaction with Russian-owned entities since the beginning of the invasion.” The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has stopped taking submissions of Russian products for its Diamond Origin Report service, and has also paused all transactions with laboratory submissions from sanctioned entities.
Meanwhile, Alrosa has delayed publication of its monthly sales data until further notice. The company was unavailable for comment at press time on Sunday.
De Beers, the world’s top diamond producer by value, saw sales jump by 18% in the second cycle of 2022 compared to the same period last year, attesting to the industry’s consolidated recovery from the first pandemic-induced shutdowns.
The Anglo American unit sold $650 million of diamonds between February 21 to February 25, down $10 million from the first cycle of the year, but higher than the $550 million it sold in the second cycle of 2021.
De Beers sells its gems through 10 sales each year in Botswana’s capital, Gaborone, and the handpicked buyers known as sightholders generally must accept the price and the quantities offered.
Customers are given a black and yellow box containing plastic bags filled with stones, with the number of boxes and quality of diamonds depending on what the buyer and De Beers agreed to in an annual allocation.
The company said that owing to the restrictions on the movement of people and products in various jurisdictions around the globe, it has continued to implement a “more flexible approach” to selling roughs, which included extending the latest sight event beyond its normal week-long duration.
The miner, which has benefitted from a steady recovery in the diamond market, is said to have hiked prices by about 8% in January. It had already increased the price of its rough diamonds throughout much of 2021 as it sought to recover from the first year of the pandemic when the industry came to a near halt. Most of these hikes, however, were applied to stones bigger than 1 carat.
The strategy granted De Beers a steady recovery during 2021. Its diamond prices rose by 23% in “just over a year,” said Mark Cutifani, CEO of Anglo American in a December presentation.
Russia-Ukraine effect De Beers may benefit from the sanctions imposed to Russian companies as Moscow-based Alrosa (MCX: ALRS), the world’s top diamond miner by output, is its main competitor.
Alrosa and its chief executive Sergei S. Ivanov were included in the first wave of restrictions announced by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), which targeted mainly banks and energy firms.
Data from the US Treasury shows Alrosa is responsible for 90% of Russia’s diamond production and 28% of global supply.
De Beers chief executive Bruce Cleaver said the company has been “shocked” and “saddened” by the war in Ukraine, so it will donate $1 million to aid organizations operating in the region and providing support to those affected by the ongoing conflict.
Experts believe that The Kremlin will soon be unable to pay its debts amid increasing international sanctions against Russia.
Credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings has downgraded its view of the country’s government debt, warning a default is “imminent” for the second time this month.
“The further ratcheting up of sanctions, and proposals that could limit trade in energy, increase the probability of a policy response by Russia that includes at least selective non-payment of its sovereign debt obligations,” the agency said.
Moscow has told investors that it will continue to service its sovereign debt but warned that international sanctions imposed on its energy industry could limit its ability and willingness to meet its obligations.
Alrosa has highlighted concerns about the impact of the US’s punitive measures after reporting its strongest annual earnings in five years.
Revenue jumped 51% to RUB 326.97 billion ($2.99 billion) in 2021 as the diamond market recovered from the previous year’s downturn, the Russian miner reported Wednesday. This drove net profit to RUB 91.32 billion ($834 million), almost triple 2020’s figure of RUB 32.25 billion ($297.3 million).
However, the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has become the most pressing issue for the company, with the US imposing sanctions on Alrosa and its CEO, Sergey Ivanov. This blocks American firms from extending credit to the miner. An alliance of Western governments has also excluded several Russian banks from the Swift international payment system.
“These sanctions are preventing the group from obtaining financing from persons and entities connected to US and from effecting payments through sanctioned banks,” Alrosa said in its results statement.
Management said it was continuing to run the business as usual and “service its obligations,” but noted that the impact of the actions was unpredictable.
In the fourth quarter of last year, revenue fell 28% year on year to RUB 70.73 billion ($642.7 million), reflecting an unfavorable comparison with the sharp market rebound a year earlier as well as scarcities of goods for the company to sell. Profit slid 43% to RUB 12.14 billion ($111.1 million).
With rough in short supply globally, Alrosa made a slight increase to its 2022 production plan, forecasting output of 34.3 million carats, compared with earlier guidance of 33 million to 34 million carats.
The US has imposed sanctions on Alrosa and its CEO, Sergey S. Ivanov, in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The diamond miner is one of 11 entities the Department of the Treasury has identified as being owned by or connected to the Russian government, according to a Thursday statement. The measures restrict American companies’ ability to engage in debt and equity transactions with Alrosa after Russia launched military action in Ukraine last week.
“Effectively, this action bans US businesses and persons from entering into debt transactions longer than 14 days with Alrosa but does not impose the harsher sanctions of an asset freeze and outright prohibition of all business,” the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC), a source of legal guidance for the industry, said in an alert to members. “For the jewelry industry, any open memo agreements previously entered into with terms longer than 14 days should immediately be amended to shorten the terms, and/or closed.”
US companies should also evaluate any current transactions with Alrosa or its stateside affiliate, Alrosa USA, to ensure they do not violate the sanctions, the JVC added. The executive order does not apply to goods acquired from Alrosa or Alrosa USA before February 24, the organization pointed out.
Alrosa, a third of which is owned by the Russian state, is responsible for 90% of Russia’s diamond-mining capacity, the Treasury noted. The sanctions include Ivanov because the US counts him among the “leaders, officials, senior executive officers, or members of the board of directors” of the Russian government, and because he is the son of sanctioned official Sergei B. Ivanov, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the statement continued.
“Treasury is taking serious and unprecedented action to deliver swift and severe consequences to the Kremlin and significantly impair their ability to use the Russian economy and financial system to further their malign activity,” said US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. “Our actions, taken in coordination with partners and allies, will degrade Russia’s ability to project power and threaten the peace and stability of Europe.”
Alrosa said its interactions with international partners would continue and that it was working to avoid any impact.
“Alrosa is carefully studying new working conditions in connection with the imposed sanctions,” a spokesperson for the miner told Rapaport News Sunday. “We intend to offer all our stakeholders the best possible service. We do our best to fulfil our obligations so that their businesses would continue to operate as usual.”
In line with its approach of fostering long-term sustainable development of the diamond market, ALROSA gives its customers an opportunity to adjust their diamond purchase schedules under trading sessions.
The demand for rough diamonds in early 2022 as well as in the second half of 2021 was outstripping supply, as cutters were actively buying rough to restock and fulfill the orders placed by jewelers and retailers.
Given the primary importance of a balanced market and the need to meet the real-backed demand, ALROSA offers its long-term customers a new option to adjust supply schedules between trading sessions. As a result, holders of long-term contracts can buy rough diamonds from their allocations ahead of the schedule by shifting booked volumes to an earlier date.
“The first quarter of the year is traditionally a period of active rough diamond purchases, as cutters seek to stock up after a holiday season in retail. The high season of 2021 was one of the most successful ones in the entire history, as we see robust demand from our customers underpinned by real orders. By reaffirming its commitment to a prudent and balanced policy aimed at sustainable progressive growth of the industry, ALROSA offers its customers a new option of adjusting diamond purchase schedules within their allocations by requesting the part of the booked rough diamond volumes to be moved to an earlier date. We believe that this innovation, together with the Gokhran auction slated for late February 2022, will speed up progress in addressing current market deficit. With the same goal in mind, we will hold an additional tender between trading sessions. We will offer the rough diamonds highly sought-after by cutters as soon as these goods leave the work-in-progress,” said Evgeny Agureev.
Long-term contracts for a 3-year period with major jewelry holdings, cutters, traders, and consumers of industrial diamonds make up the core of ALROSA’s sales system and traditionally account for the largest part of the company’s turnover. ALROSA makes special efforts to guarantee responsible business practices across the diamond production chain.
Alrosa has increased prices for the third consecutive contract sale, fueling concerns about unsustainable growth and tight manufacturing profits.
The adjustments were 4% to 5% on average, with a focus on 1-carat rough and larger, insiders told Rapaport News this week. Prices of that category are now higher than pre-pandemic levels, a customer noted.
Alrosa declined to comment on its “commercial strategy,” but a spokesperson said the Russian miner “assures that prices for its goods follow the real, confirmed demand from the midstream sector.”
The sale, which took place this week, came amid strong rough demand following positive holiday seasons in the US and China. But there were warnings of a slowdown as the quiet season approaches.
“Since the rough market is so strong, everyone accepts the [prices], but it’s becoming a bubble that might explode,” a source cautioned.
Industry members highlighted possible challenges for manufacturers. Rough prices have outpaced polished, they claimed, with the upcoming slow months raising concerns about end demand.
“[The miners have] taken away all the profit margin from the manufacturing pipeline, because…when the polished is ready, the polished market will be slightly weaker than today,” an Alrosa customer explained. “Probably, we will all lose some money, and not even make the costs.”
Alrosa maintained its policy of allowing customers to refuse any unwanted goods — a concession that has been in place since the start of the pandemic.
However, some clients felt compelled to buy to ensure they retain their allocations in the new contract period, which begins April 1, one customer pointed out. Even so, rough sales at the trading session will likely be lower than the $421 million it reported for January and the $361 million it garnered in February, reflecting a drop in the miner’s supply, he added.
De Beers: Less availability
De Beers will also offer limited supply at its sight next week as its reduced production plan for 2021 has affected availability. Sources expect sales of around $400 million, compared with $663 million in January and $550 million in February. The company lowered its full-year production forecast in January because of operational issues at some of its mines.
“We continue to take a prudent approach with our mine plans given the ongoing pandemic and associated uncertainty,” a De Beers spokesperson said Wednesday.
With fewer goods on the table, further price increases by De Beers are unlikely at next week’s sale, a sightholder predicted. The miner already increased prices in December, January and February, reversing a sharp price cut it implemented in August.
“There was a major pushback on the goods last month,” the sightholder commented. “In anything that [produces] pointers and large [polished goods], they went way too far, and everybody said so. There were also refusals. If [prices] go up now, everyone will just leave the goods.”
Alrosa has increased prices for the third consecutive contract sale, fueling concerns about unsustainable growth and tight manufacturing profits.
The adjustments were 4% to 5% on average, with a focus on 1-carat rough and larger, insiders told Rapaport News this week. Prices of that category are now higher than pre-pandemic levels, a customer noted.
Alrosa declined to comment on its “commercial strategy,” but a spokesperson said the Russian miner “assures that prices for its goods follow the real, confirmed demand from the midstream sector.”
The sale, which took place this week, came amid strong rough demand following positive holiday seasons in the US and China. But there were warnings of a slowdown as the quiet season approaches.
“Since the rough market is so strong, everyone accepts the [prices], but it’s becoming a bubble that might explode,” a source cautioned.
Industry members highlighted possible challenges for manufacturers. Rough prices have outpaced polished, they claimed, with the upcoming slow months raising concerns about end demand.
“[The miners have] taken away all the profit margin from the manufacturing pipeline, because…when the polished is ready, the polished market will be slightly weaker than today,” an Alrosa customer explained. “Probably, we will all lose some money, and not even make the costs.”
Alrosa maintained its policy of allowing customers to refuse any unwanted goods — a concession that has been in place since the start of the pandemic.
However, some clients felt compelled to buy to ensure they retain their allocations in the new contract period, which begins April 1, one customer pointed out. Even so, rough sales at the trading session will likely be lower than the $421 million it reported for January and the $361 million it garnered in February, reflecting a drop in the miner’s supply, he added.
De Beers: Less availability
De Beers will also offer limited supply at its sight next week as its reduced production plan for 2021 has affected availability. Sources expect sales of around $400 million, compared with $663 million in January and $550 million in February. The company lowered its full-year production forecast in January because of operational issues at some of its mines.
“We continue to take a prudent approach with our mine plans given the ongoing pandemic and associated uncertainty,” a De Beers spokesperson said Wednesday.
With fewer goods on the table, further price increases by De Beers are unlikely at next week’s sale, a sightholder predicted. The miner already increased prices in December, January and February, reversing a sharp price cut it implemented in August.
“There was a major pushback on the goods last month,” the sightholder commented. “In anything that [produces] pointers and large [polished goods], they went way too far, and everybody said so. There were also refusals. If [prices] go up now, everyone will just leave the goods.”
The two largest diamond miners increased prices at this week’s rough sales as demand improved due to post-holiday restocking and strong trading ahead of the Chinese New Year.
De Beers raised prices by an average of 4% to 5% at its first sight of 2021, while Alrosa’s increases were around 6% to 7%, industry insiders told Rapaport News Monday. Both companies implemented steeper hikes in larger categories than for smaller goods, sources said.
“Alrosa makes sure that prices reflect the actual market trends and a confirmed real demand,” a spokesperson for the Russian miner said. De Beers declined to comment.
The miners have steadily been reversing the prices cuts they made in the second half of last year. De Beers’ price rise was its second in a row, with January prices almost back to pre-pandemic levels, sightholders noted.
The rough market showed momentum in January following a better 2020 holiday season than many had feared earlier in the year. Cutting factories in India raised polished production to full capacity as shortages emerged and retailers restocked, prompting manufacturers to buy rough in large quantities.
Demand rose on the secondary market, with De Beers clients able to make profits of 5% to 7% by reselling goods ahead of the sight. Those premiums declined slightly following the price increase.
“[Polished] inventory levels are the lowest for at least the past seven or eight years,” an executive at a sightholder said. “That’s the reason people are going to be more aggressive in their purchasing,” he continued, adding that some traders foresaw a spike in consumer demand due to government stimulus packages.
Prices at smaller miners’ tenders were higher still — in contrast to mid-2020, when manufacturers could get goods up to 25% cheaper on the open market compared with De Beers and Alrosa boxes. Tender prices fluctuate with the market conditions more than contract-sale prices do, as the smaller rough producers have greater liquidity needs.
Some traders expressed concern that the surge in rough purchases could lead to an oversupply, as Chinese retailers have almost finished preparing their inventories for the upcoming lunar festival on February 12.
“It’s time to go back to business, but it’s no time to push your production to the max and buy rough at any price with the excuse that your factory needs it,” another sightholder argued. “The end of year has been OK, including in the States. There are great expectations for a fantastic Chinese New Year, but the reality is that any Chinese retailer has stopped buying as from this week.”
Amid the uncertainty, Alrosa kept its policy of allowing customers to defer 100% of their allocations in January, noting that it wished to uphold the balance between supply and demand.
De Beers also allowed sightholders to refuse a proportion of their allocations for goods up to around 0.75 carats, while maintaining its standard flexibility — including 10% buybacks — in larger categories.
De Beers’ sight began on Monday in Botswana and runs until Friday, with viewings also taking place in Antwerp and Dubai. Alrosa’s sale started last Friday and continues for a week.
The two largest diamond miners increased prices at this week’s rough sales as demand improved due to post-holiday restocking and strong trading ahead of the Chinese New Year.
De Beers raised prices by an average of 4% to 5% at its first sight of 2021, while Alrosa’s increases were around 6% to 7%, industry insiders told Rapaport News Monday. Both companies implemented steeper hikes in larger categories than for smaller goods, sources said.
“Alrosa makes sure that prices reflect the actual market trends and a confirmed real demand,” a spokesperson for the Russian miner said. De Beers declined to comment.
The miners have steadily been reversing the prices cuts they made in the second half of last year. De Beers’ price rise was its second in a row, with January prices almost back to pre-pandemic levels, sightholders noted.
The rough market showed momentum in January following a better 2020 holiday season than many had feared earlier in the year. Cutting factories in India raised polished production to full capacity as shortages emerged and retailers restocked, prompting manufacturers to buy rough in large quantities.
Demand rose on the secondary market, with De Beers clients able to make profits of 5% to 7% by reselling goods ahead of the sight. Those premiums declined slightly following the price increase.
“[Polished] inventory levels are the lowest for at least the past seven or eight years,” an executive at a sightholder said. “That’s the reason people are going to be more aggressive in their purchasing,” he continued, adding that some traders foresaw a spike in consumer demand due to government stimulus packages.
Prices at smaller miners’ tenders were higher still — in contrast to mid-2020, when manufacturers could get goods up to 25% cheaper on the open market compared with De Beers and Alrosa boxes. Tender prices fluctuate with the market conditions more than contract-sale prices do, as the smaller rough producers have greater liquidity needs.
Some traders expressed concern that the surge in rough purchases could lead to an oversupply, as Chinese retailers have almost finished preparing their inventories for the upcoming lunar festival on February 12.
“It’s time to go back to business, but it’s no time to push your production to the max and buy rough at any price with the excuse that your factory needs it,” another sightholder argued. “The end of year has been OK, including in the States. There are great expectations for a fantastic Chinese New Year, but the reality is that any Chinese retailer has stopped buying as from this week.”
Amid the uncertainty, Alrosa kept its policy of allowing customers to defer 100% of their allocations in January, noting that it wished to uphold the balance between supply and demand.
De Beers also allowed sightholders to refuse a proportion of their allocations for goods up to around 0.75 carats, while maintaining its standard flexibility — including 10% buybacks — in larger categories.
De Beers’ sight began on Monday in Botswana and runs until Friday, with viewings also taking place in Antwerp and Dubai. Alrosa’s sale started last Friday and continues for a week.
Alrosa’s Spirit of the Rose has achieved the highest price for any purple-pink diamond, selling to an anonymous bidder for nearly $27 million at Sotheby’s Geneva.
The oval modified brilliant-cut, 14.83-carat, fancy-vivid-purple-pink, internally flawless, type II stone, named for the famous Russian ballet, sold for $26.6 million, beating its low estimate of $23 million. The diamond, which fetched $1.8 million per carat, led the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels live auction Wednesday, which garnered $52.2 million in total, Sotheby’s said.
The purchase comes on the heels of the recent closure of Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine in Australia, which produced more than 90% of the world’s pink diamonds. Prices for stones of that color are likely to soar in the coming years, experts have noted.
“The Spirit of the Rose caught the imagination of everyone who had the chance to see it,” said Benoit Repellin, head of the Sotheby’s Geneva Magnificent Jewels auction. “With its size, beautiful color, perfect cut and oval shape, it is a wonder of nature, steeped in Russia’s century-long diamond tradition and cultural heritage. It fully deserves the price achieved tonight, which is also testament to the growing appreciation and awareness of the great scarcity of pink diamonds around the world.”
Sotheby’s also saw strong prices for white diamonds at the auction, with 10 out of 11 stones on offer selling above their estimates. A cushion-shaped, 18.03-carat, D-color, flawless, type IIa diamond fetched $1.9 million against a high estimate of $1.1 million, while a pear-shaped, 102.41-carat, light-brown diamond of VVS2 clarity brought in $1.3 million, exceeding its high valuation.
Noble jewels were in demand as well, Sotheby’s said, led by a Colombian emerald and diamond parure from the collection of the first Marquis de Guirior, viceroy of New Granada and viceroy of Peru. That piece also surpassed its high estimate, fetching $1.1 million.
