TRADE ALERT: India is undergoing a severe Covid-19 crisis that will impact the global diamond trade. India manufactures about 92% of the world’s diamonds. While the Indian government is doing everything possible to support continued diamond manufacturing and exports, shortages and price volatility are expected to intensify over the next few months. This is a good time to support Indian suppliers. The disruption to the supply chain will be significant once current goods being processed by the GIA are put on the market. We anticipate a 30% to 40% reduction in Indian production during the months prior to the holiday season. Our hearts and prayers go out to the Indian diamond community. May they stay safe and recover swiftly.
Watchdog Cautions Diamond Council over Ad Claims
RAPAPORT. A US advertising regulator has rebuked the Natural Diamond Council (NDC) over its environmental claims following a complaint by Diamond Foundry, a lab-grown producer.
The National Advertising Division, part of industry self-regulator BBB National Programs, has called on the NDC to stop using certain assertions that compare natural stones with synthetics, it said Thursday. These include statements that lab-grown diamonds emit three times more carbon than their mined counterparts.
The recommendation revolved around claims the Diamond Producers Association (DPA) the NDC’s predecessor first published in a 2019 report on the relative impact of the two products. In it, the DPA estimated the average carbon-dioxide emissions of its members at 160 kilograms per carat of polished, using data from 2016. That compared with emissions of 511 kilograms per carat for the equivalent lab-grown material.
De Beers’ Rough Production Falls
RAPAPORT. De Beers reported a decline in rough-diamond production in the first quarter while maintaining its full-year guidance as demand recovered to pre-pandemic levels.
Operational challenges drove a 7% year-on-year slump in output to 7.2 million carats, De Beers’ parent company Anglo American said Thursday. Declines in Botswana, Namibia and Canada outweighed a strong recovery in South African production.
Botswana, which accounted for more than two-thirds of total production in the quarter ending March 31, saw rough production plunge by 12% to 5 million carats. Heavy rainfall and operational issues such as continued power-supply disruptions took out almost a quarter of production at the Orapa site, the world’s largest open-pit diamond mine, the company said.
GIA Announces Winners of Beyoncé Scholarship
RAPAPORT. Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has chosen the Black industry professionals who will win a scholarship for a graduate gemologist degree from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
The performer selected Audriana Osborne and Shelton Bradford to receive The Beyoncé Knowles-Carter x Lorraine Schwartz GIA Scholarship, the GIA said Tuesday. In their applications, the winners wrote about their life experience and the origin of their passion for gems and jewelry, and revealed what they would do with the opportunity to increase Black representation in the industry.
Osborne, an Alabama native, aspires to intersect creative expression and legal advocacy into a career that ensures that marginalized groups and their creativity are protected and cultivated. Meanwhile, Bradford, who hails from California, intends to open his own business and pass his legacy and love of gemstones down to his children, the GIA noted.
Ben Bridge Sponsors GIA Minority Scholarship
RAPAPORT. Warren Buffett-owned jeweler Ben Bridge and the Black in Jewelry Coalition (BIJC) are sponsoring a scholarship for a minority candidate to receive a degree from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
The jeweler will also provide the winner of the Lonia Tate scholarship with an internship at one of its locations after the candidate has completed the GIA graduate gemologist program, the BIJC said Monday. The scholarship and internship are both intended for someone who wishes to have a career in fine jewelry.
The award is in memory of Tate, who was a registered jeweler and long-term associate at Ben Bridge. She was heavily involved in community service, and served as the first Black president of the Seattle chapter of Executive Women International, BIJC noted.