Diamond Industry

Diamonds may be forged under immense pressure, but Dikeledi Skonyela believes the same is true of people. At 35, she is not only building a jewellery business — she is opening…

Market pressures have driven sightholders to rebel against the high prices being set by Anglo, writes Roman Grynberg.

Industry leaders say that the current demand is not sustainable, and predict that prices will taper off towards the latter half of 2016.

Namibia, Botswana and South Africa did little to halt the collapse of the beneficiation industry.

Unfair revenue-sharing in the Southern African Customs Union is getting worse, writes Roman Grynberg.

A jaw-dropping, 100-carat diamond mined by De Beers in South Africa sold for $22.1-million at Sotheby’s auction house in New York.

Rising costs have exposed flaws in a beneficiation deal that should have been clear-cut, writes Roman Grynberg.

Low productivity and the concomitant costs are harming the local beneficiation industry.

Botswana’s industry is sparkling compared with its neighbour’s declining sector.

The Oppenheimer dynasty has ended by selling their 40% of De Beers to global miner Anglo American for $5.1-billion.

Big money arriving in the country has resuscitated old rivalries among the political elite.

The country is eager to rid itself of a large stockpile and could deliver 25% of global supply.

Angola’s diamond sector is slowly recovering but gem prices still need to rise by around 15% this year to enable companies reinvest in it.

It wouldn’t be fitting to mount a barrage of ”sale” and ”special offer” signs in the windows of jewellers crowded into Antwerp’s diamond square mile.

‘Watertight’ investments in diamond mines and real estate spring a major leak.