Sarine Joins Race to Buy HRD Antwerp

Sarine Technologies has entered the running to acquire HRD Antwerp, according to two sources close to the sale process.

The Israel-based diamond-technology company has registered its interest in buying the Belgian laboratory, as have two previous heads of HRD, the two anonymous sources told Rapaport News.

Peter Meeus, who ran the organization between 1999 and 2005, was one of the first candidates be linked to a potential bid around a month ago. He is now joined by Serge Couvreur, who served as HRD’s general manager from 2013 to 2014, as well as by Sarine. The International Gemological Institute (IGI) also entered a bid earlier this year, as reported by Rapaport News in early November, but has since pulled out, the sources confirmed. The situation is changing constantly, another source pointed out.

Sarine’s move could be seen as part of its increased focus on grading and other downstream activities. While its main business is providing diamond-mapping equipment to manufacturers, the polished-grading sector offers considerable revenue opportunities and margins, Sarine noted last month.

Potential buyers of HRD have until next Tuesday to submit a final bid with a proposed price, one of the sources added.

HRD and the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, which owns the lab, declined to comment, as did the three bidders and IGI.

Source: DCLA

Sarine Joins Race to Buy HRD Antwerp

Sarine Technologies has entered the running to acquire HRD Antwerp, according to two sources close to the sale process.

The Israel-based diamond-technology company has registered its interest in buying the Belgian laboratory, as have two previous heads of HRD, the two anonymous sources told Rapaport News.

Peter Meeus, who ran the organization between 1999 and 2005, was one of the first candidates be linked to a potential bid around a month ago. He is now joined by Serge Couvreur, who served as HRD’s general manager from 2013 to 2014, as well as by Sarine. The International Gemological Institute (IGI) also entered a bid earlier this year, as reported by Rapaport News in early November, but has since pulled out, the sources confirmed. The situation is changing constantly, another source pointed out.

Sarine’s move could be seen as part of its increased focus on grading and other downstream activities. While its main business is providing diamond-mapping equipment to manufacturers, the polished-grading sector offers considerable revenue opportunities and margins, Sarine noted last month.

Potential buyers of HRD have until next Tuesday to submit a final bid with a proposed price, one of the sources added.

HRD and the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, which owns the lab, declined to comment, as did the three bidders and IGI.

Source: DCLA

Bespoke Certified Diamond Jewellery Insurance launches in Australia

CDI combines superior knowledge in the insurance and diamond industries to create a market leading product that will provide you with the right cover at the right price.

Like you, we treasure diamonds and believe they deserve the best worldwide cover should anything happen to them.

It’s why we offer a bespoke insurance policy only for certified diamond jewellery.

Specify your single item or items, and let us do the rest. Fill in your details online, register your diamond and receive instant protection against damage, loss or theft. Alternatively, give us a call and we can get the quotation process moving for you.

Your policy is underwritten at Lloyd’s of London, the oldest and most prestigious name in insurance.

And our Worldwide Cover ensures you are covered anywhere in the world for trips up to 30 days.

Our Certified Diamond Insurance team is based here in Australia and are available to help with any insurance questions you may have.

Also, so your diamonds remain as fabulous as the day you got them, we offer yearly complimentary health checks and cleans.

It’s all part of our dedicated service to keep your diamonds in their best shape.

Value Assurance
We combine superior knowledge in the diamond and insurance industries to create market-leading cover at the right price.

Accurate Claims
Your claim is overseen by diamond experts and vetted by a leading diamond laboratory, ensuring your replacement is of the same quality.

World-class Cover
Your insurance is underwritten by certain underwriters at Lloyd’s. Lloyd’s is the world’s specialist insurance and reinsurance market

Identification Recovery
Since your diamond is certified, we’ll also register and ID your diamonds, increasing the possibility of recovering them.

Source: Certified Diamond Insurance

Bespoke Certified Diamond Jewellery Insurance launches in Australia

CDI combines superior knowledge in the insurance and diamond industries to create a market leading product that will provide you with the right cover at the right price.

Like you, we treasure diamonds and believe they deserve the best worldwide cover should anything happen to them.

It’s why we offer a bespoke insurance policy only for certified diamond jewellery.

Specify your single item or items, and let us do the rest. Fill in your details online, register your diamond and receive instant protection against damage, loss or theft. Alternatively, give us a call and we can get the quotation process moving for you.

Your policy is underwritten at Lloyd’s of London, the oldest and most prestigious name in insurance.

And our Worldwide Cover ensures you are covered anywhere in the world for trips up to 30 days.

Our Certified Diamond Insurance team is based here in Australia and are available to help with any insurance questions you may have.

Also, so your diamonds remain as fabulous as the day you got them, we offer yearly complimentary health checks and cleans.

It’s all part of our dedicated service to keep your diamonds in their best shape.

Value Assurance
We combine superior knowledge in the diamond and insurance industries to create market-leading cover at the right price.

Accurate Claims
Your claim is overseen by diamond experts and vetted by a leading diamond laboratory, ensuring your replacement is of the same quality.

World-class Cover
Your insurance is underwritten by certain underwriters at Lloyd’s. Lloyd’s is the world’s specialist insurance and reinsurance market

Identification Recovery
Since your diamond is certified, we’ll also register and ID your diamonds, increasing the possibility of recovering them.

Source: Certified Diamond Insurance

Hong Kong Retail Sales Plunge

Sales of jewelry and other luxury items in Hong Kong slid in October, marking the second-highest monthly decline on record as protests in the municipality dented consumer sentiment.

Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts fell 43% year on year to HKD 3.92 billion ($500.2 million) during the month, the municipality’s Census and Statistics Department reported Monday. . Sales across all retail categories slipped 24% to HKD 30.12 billion ($3.85 billion).

Demonstrations against an extradition bill have been ongoing since June, interfering with retail sales and hitting local consumer sentiment and tourism. Although the bill has been scrapped, violence in the municipality has continued.

“[Total] retail sales continued to plunge in October, and showed the largest year-on-year decline for a single month on record, as the local social incidents…depressed consumption sentiment and severely disrupted tourism and consumption-related activities,” a government spokesperson noted.

August showed the highest decline for jewelry since the Census and Statistics Department began publishing results in 2005. While January was the only month this year to note an increase, leading to a nine-month consecutive decline, sales during August, September and October each fell more than 40%.

The situation has led to a sharp drop in travelers from China and abroad, as well as weakened local purchasing. Tourism in Hong Kong was down 44% to 3.3 million visitors in October, the Hong Kong Tourism Board reported. Of those, 2.5 million came from mainland China, 46% fewer than the same period last year.

The government expects weakness in the market to continue as conditions persist, stressing that the market would likely not improve until the unrest subsided.

“Ending the violence in the local social incidents and restoring social order are crucial to the creation of an environment for the retail business to recover,” the spokesperson added, noting the government would continue to monitor the situation’s repercussions on both the municipality’s labor market and the overall economy.

In the first 10 months of the year, retail sales of jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts decreased 19% to HKD 57.67 billion ($7.37 billion). Sales in all retail categories for the January-to-October period fell 9% to HKD 365.12 billion ($46.6 billion).

Source: DCLA

Hong Kong Retail Sales Plunge

Sales of jewelry and other luxury items in Hong Kong slid in October, marking the second-highest monthly decline on record as protests in the municipality dented consumer sentiment.

Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts fell 43% year on year to HKD 3.92 billion ($500.2 million) during the month, the municipality’s Census and Statistics Department reported Monday. . Sales across all retail categories slipped 24% to HKD 30.12 billion ($3.85 billion).

Demonstrations against an extradition bill have been ongoing since June, interfering with retail sales and hitting local consumer sentiment and tourism. Although the bill has been scrapped, violence in the municipality has continued.

“[Total] retail sales continued to plunge in October, and showed the largest year-on-year decline for a single month on record, as the local social incidents…depressed consumption sentiment and severely disrupted tourism and consumption-related activities,” a government spokesperson noted.

August showed the highest decline for jewelry since the Census and Statistics Department began publishing results in 2005. While January was the only month this year to note an increase, leading to a nine-month consecutive decline, sales during August, September and October each fell more than 40%.

The situation has led to a sharp drop in travelers from China and abroad, as well as weakened local purchasing. Tourism in Hong Kong was down 44% to 3.3 million visitors in October, the Hong Kong Tourism Board reported. Of those, 2.5 million came from mainland China, 46% fewer than the same period last year.

The government expects weakness in the market to continue as conditions persist, stressing that the market would likely not improve until the unrest subsided.

“Ending the violence in the local social incidents and restoring social order are crucial to the creation of an environment for the retail business to recover,” the spokesperson added, noting the government would continue to monitor the situation’s repercussions on both the municipality’s labor market and the overall economy.

In the first 10 months of the year, retail sales of jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts decreased 19% to HKD 57.67 billion ($7.37 billion). Sales in all retail categories for the January-to-October period fell 9% to HKD 365.12 billion ($46.6 billion).

Source: DCLA

Drake’s New Rolls-Royce Diamond Owl

The rap icon has sold over 170 million albums since hitting the music scene in 2019, and with that kind of success comes all kinds of cash for going bonkers on cars.

His latest acquisition is a Rolls-Royce Phantom, but being this is Drake’s new ride, it’s not just a Phantom if such a thing exists.

Among other things, it has a custom golden owl for a hood ornament that’s also covered in diamonds. More on that in a bit.

The owl has been a thing with Drake for years, and it’s also the symbol for his record label OVO Sound, so having it affixed to the Phantom’s nose isn’t just a random act of weirdness.

As mentioned, the owl is solid gold and uses diamonds for its eyes. Diamonds also encompass the entire base, with Drake’s name engraved for good measure.

Source: DCLA