Lulo Mine Turns Out Sixth Large Stone This Year
RAPAPORT. Lucapa Diamond Company has recovered a 144-carat rough diamond from its Lulo alluvial mine in Angola, it said Tuesday.
The company found the D-color, type IIa diamond at the site’s Mining Block 08, a section of the deposit known for its large, high-value rough. The stone is the sixth over 100 carats Lucapa has found at Lulo this year, and the 23rd of that magnitude from the site since mining operations began.
The miner unearthed three 100-carat-plus diamonds last week: a 131-carat, D-color, type IIa diamond, a 118-carat brown, and a 133-carat, lower-quality grey diamond.
RAPAPORT. Hong Kong-based retail sales of jewelry and other hard luxury soared in February, but the government remained cautious considering the continued impact of the pandemic.
“The retail trade will continue to face a difficult business environment in the near term as inbound tourism remains frozen,” a government spokesperson said last week. “It is thus pivotal to put the epidemic under control at the soonest possible, so as to create a favorable environment for the revival of cross-boundary tourism activities.”
Revenue from jewelry, watches, clocks and other valuable gifts more than doubled to HKD 3.32 billion ($426.4 million) during the month from HKD 1.55 billion ($199.2 million) a year before, the municipality’s Census and Statistics Department reported. Sales across all retail categories rose 30% to HKD 29.55 billion ($3.8 billion).
The company will likely offer the type IIb diamond via a special tender, it said Thursday.
The discovery follows Petra’s sale of five blue diamonds to De Beers and Diacore for $40.4 million last year. Those stones, also from Cullinan, weighed a combined 85.6 carats, and ranged from 9.61 to 25.75 carats. Image: The 39.34-carat diamond. (Petra Diamonds)
RAPAPORT. Alrosa has pushed back its April contract sale by a week to support the diamond industry’s inventory balance, it said.
The next trading session will begin on April 19 instead of April 12, the Russian miner announced Wednesday.
“We are glad to see the continuing recovery of the industry, with our clients expressing sustainable interest in purchasing our goods,” said Alrosa deputy CEO Evgeny Agureev. “However, in our view, it is very important to keep the.supply and demand [of rough diamonds] balanced under [the] current circumstances. To maintain the market balance and avoid excessive stocks accumulation, clients should have ample time to process and sell the goods they have purchased earlier.”
Diamond market quiet during Passover, Easter and India’s Holi festival. Dealers expecting stable 2Q trading. Some concern that rising inventory levels may impact prices during slower season. More polished becoming available due to increase in manufacturing since beginning of the year, as evidenced by GIA backlog. Rough demand expected to drop after robust 1Q buying. 1 ct. RAPI +1.5% in March. Index now above pre-pandemic levels. Optimistic outlook for jewelry sales in US and mainland China. Lack of travel continues to impact tourist retail centers like Hong Kong and Europe. Chow Sang Sang 2020 revenue -15% to $1.9B, profit -15% to $70M.