RAPAPORT. The World Jewellery Confederation (CIBJO) has released a consumer-targeted publication explaining how to describe and categorize pearls.
The 62-page “CIBJO Guide for Classifying Natural Pearls and Cultured Pearls” is a reference point for the general public and the jewelry trade, the organization said Thursday. Dealing with both seawater and freshwater specimens, the free, downloadable document highlights the parameters for assessing their physical dimensions and quality.
Paspaley Pearling, a supplier in Australia, wrote the original draft, focusing mainly on the section covering the classification of cultured pearls. Experts at the Bahrain Institute for Pearls and Gemstones (DANAT) prepared the segment on the classification of akoya natural pearls.
RAPAPORT. Rio Tinto’s rough-diamond sales fell 26% to $459 million in 2020 as the coronavirus crisis limited global trading, the mining group reported.
“A heavy decline in spending on jewelry impacted underlying demand, while lockdowns in India’s manufacturing centers restricted the volume of rough diamonds purchased from miners,” Rio Tinto said last week.
Realized diamond prices slid 21%, it added. However, net earnings for the diamond division came to $9 million, compared with a $21 million loss in 2019.
Diamond production dropped 14% to 14.7 million carats, reflecting a 10% reduction in the grade at the Diavik mine in Canada, which outweighed an increase in the quantity of ore the company processed. The decline also resulted from the closure of the Argyle deposit in Australia on November 3. With Argyle now off stream, the company has forecasted 2021 output of 3 million to 3.8 million carats from its 40% share of Diavik, compared with 3.7 million carats in 2020.
RAPAPORT. The developer of a new jewelry retail complex in Miami has secured a $23.6 million loan, enabling it to move forward with the project.The funds from City National Bank of Florida will go toward completing phase one of the Time Century Jewelry Center program. This consists of.
RAPAPORT. Diamond miners reported steady sales at their January rough tenders as demand and prices grew at the start of the year.Alrosa garnered $10 million at a sale of stones above 10.8 carats, which it held in Dubai from January 19 to February 9. Some 39 companies from Belgium, India,.
US retail sales surged in January as government stimulus checks boosted consumer confidence, the National Retail Federation (NRF) said.Revenues grew 7% year on year, and were up 5% over December’s total, which included holiday sales results, according to data the US Census Bureau reported.