NDC Debunks Common Myths in Diamond Industry: LGD’s Under Fire in Report

Natural Diamond Council, the authoritative resource on natural diamonds, has released its 2023 analytical report entitled, Diamond Facts: Addressing myths and misconceptions about the diamond industry. Through this report, the Natural Diamond Council (NDC) set out to address misinformation about both natural diamonds and laboratory-grown diamonds for industry players, retailers, and consumers alike.

In-depthSustainability

Burgundy Diamonds Acquires 100% of Artic Canadian’s Assets Including Ekati Mine

Australia-based Burgundy Diamond Mines has signed a binding share purchase agreement to acquire Canada-based Artic Canadian’s (AC) assets, including the entirety of Ekati Diamond mine, for nearly $136m. AC owns 100% of all businesses, assets and other interests comprising the producing Ekati mine in Canada’s Northwest Territories and expects the sale to result in a significant recapitalization of the firm and allow for continued operations for the Ekati Diamond Mine, which has been in production for nearly 25 years.

In-depthRough Market

Petra Posts Interim results for the 6-Months Ending 31 Dec 2022

(PETRA PRESS RELEASE): Petra Diamonds Limited announces its unaudited interim results for the six months ended 31 December 2022.

Richard Duffy, Chief Executive Officer at Petra Diamonds commented:

Rough MarketIn-depth

IDEX: Price Report for February Indicates Price Drop in Rounds

Round prices fell yet again during January amid continued hesitancy in the markets, although fancies fared much better. Overall demand remains slow, sentiment is weak, and manufacturing in India is still well below full capacity. Estimates for the number of workers laid off in Surat vary between 10,000 and 20,000. China scrapped its zero-COVID policy in December, which has freed up trade and travel, but has seen infection levels well above anything the country has ever experienced.

Finance and TradeIn-depth

Antwerp Diamond Polishers Develop Device That Uses AI to Grade Colored Stones

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.

GradingIn-depth

Analysts Believe Signet’s Recent Blue Nile Acquisition Could Play Out for a 50% Upside in Stock Price in the Medium Term in 2023

According to market analysis firm Seeking Alpha, Signet’s management seems to be doing all the right things - whether it's making smart acquisitions, divesting a risky sub-prime financing business, shutting underperforming stores, or maintaining strong margins.

Finance and TradeIn-depthMarket Analysis

China Makes Critical Advancements in Digitalization: Issues First E-Certificate

The Chinese National Gemstone Testing Center (or NGTC for short) has issued the first digital certificates (or e-Certificate) for their strategic partner, Chow Taifook (or CTF for short). This is an important step for NGTC’s digitizing transformation. By downloading the NGTC APP or using the WeChat Applet, a user only needs to scan the NGTC certificate code to retrieve the NGTC digital certificate immediately.

TechnologyIn-depth