RAPAPORT. India’s gem and jewelry sector is increasingly turning to digital channels to drive business following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, a credit agency said.
The proportion of small businesses using online methods to sell products has more than quadrupled to 55% since the beginning of Covid-19, compared with 13% before, according to a survey that India-based Crisil Ratings released last week. The agency defined small business as those with annual revenue under INR 250 million ($3.4 million).
All businesses surveyed said digital contributed about 11% to 25% of total revenue before the virus, while 45% had maintained those numbers as of November. The other 55% of respondents stated their digital contribution had increased to between 26% and 50% of total sales.
RAPAPORT. The diamond industry underwent rapid changes in 2020 as the coronavirus swept through the world and devastated economies. The much-read Rapaport Weekly Market Comment kept up with the news, narrating the state of the trade while the situation developed at high speed.
In the first quarter, this included the virus’s shift from an epidemic in China to a major pandemic that shut down rough and polished trading, forced retail stores to close, and hammered diamond prices. The report also tracked how the industry came to deal with the new reality in later months, and how shortages and the release of pent-up demand fueled a modest recovery in the second half.
RAPAPORT. Graff subsidiary Safdico has purchased a substantial number of shares in Lucapa Diamond Company as part of the miner’s bid to raise money for the expansion of its Mothae deposit.
Lucapa shareholders approved the sale of 6% of company stock to diamond manufacturer Safdico for AUD 2.7 million ($2.1 million) at its general meeting December 17. In total, Lucapa aimed to raise approximately AUD 10 million ($7.6 million).
“We invested in the company because Lucapa needed money to restart the [Lesotho] mine after Covid-19, and for its expansion, and we already have an offtake agreement for their Lulo diamonds,” a Safdico representative told
Rapaport News Tuesday.
RAPAPORT. US consumer confidence fell almost 5% this month amid the latest coronavirus wave, according to the Conference Board.
The business data group’s Consumer Confidence Index declined to 88.6 in December, from 92.9 in November, it reported Tuesday. Americans gave a weaker assessment of current business and labor conditions a fact that outweighed an improvement in their short-term outlook for the economy.
Participants in the survey, which ran until December 14, said they were less likely to go on vacation, after this measure improved in October, noted Lynn Franco, the Conference Board’s senior director of economic indicators. However, the extra time they spent at home made them more willing to buy appliances.
RAPAPORT. Wedding spending in the US dropped in 2020 and will remain low in 2021, even as the number of people tying the knot next year is expected to surge, a survey found.
This year, 1.1 million couples wed, compared to an average of 2.13 million over each of the last two years, according to the latest data published by the Wedding Report. The average spend on a wedding in 2020 was $19,850, down from $24,680 in 2019, an August survey found, with many cancelling or pushing off their events to 2021 due to the coronavirus.
The coming year will witness about 2.77 million nuptials, as about 650,000 couples bring their celebrations forward, the wedding statistics forecaster noted. However, couples are expected to trim their guest lists, as well as their overall budgets. Those getting married will spend an average of $21,680 on their event next year.