Exclusive
Diamond market crash is Africa’s opportunity, not its crisis – M'zée Fula Ngenge
Global natural diamond supply is forecast to fall below 95 million carats this year, the lowest since 1987. For Dr. M'zée Fula Ngenge, chairperson of the African Diamond Council (ADC), this is not a death knell but a clarion call. In an exclusive...
Yesterday
Tracr passes 5 million rough diamonds milestone as De Beers expands provenance push
De Beers Group's blockchain-enabled traceability platform Tracr reached a significant milestone in 2025, with more than 5 million rough diamonds individually scanned and registered, up from 2.8 million cumulative registrations reported in 2024. The...
28 september 2026
South African diamonds head to Hong Kong: SDT partners with BRINKS for JGW 2026
South Africa’s State Diamond Trader (SDT) has confirmed the country's participation in Jewellery & Gem World Hong Kong (JGW) 2026 through a partnership with BRINKS. SDT marketing and communication manager Tsholofelo Gopolang Tselapedi...
14 september 2026
David Benderly: PermaScribe seeks to put trust mark on diamond table, not just girdle
In this interview with Rough & Polished’s Mathew Nyaungwa, PhotoScribe Technologies president and chief executive David Benderly explains how PermaScribe differs technically from conventional laser inscription, its potential to strengthen security, and...
31 august 2026
The great reset: Paul Zimnisky on supply catharsis, De Beers' bargain and the case for natural diamonds
The natural diamond industry is in the throes of its most profound reset in a generation. Supply is plunging to its lowest level since 1987 and De Beers—once valued at over $9 billion—is reportedly being sold for as little as $1 billion.
Lab-grown...
10 august 2026
For the first time in ten years, ALROSA commissions a new diamond mine in Yakutia
10 march 2015
ALROSA's production strategy targeted to drive its output to 41 million carats by 2023 suggests a coordinated approach to putting Yakutia’s diamond fields into operation and out of operation to maintain the current levels of mining. Operations at Nyurbinskaya, the primary diamond pipe of the Nyurba Mining Division of ALROSA, will be suspended this year due to reconstruction. This explains the commissioning of the second diamond pipe developed by the Nyurba Mining Division, which is Botuobinskaya, in early March 2015. Over the past 10 years, Botuobinskaya is the first diamond field commissioned in Yakutia.
Weak oil prices hit Angola: lesson for Botswana’s over-reliance on diamonds
10 march 2015
Angola's cabinet recently cut the proposed 2015 budget spending by 1.8 trillion kwanza ($17 billion) to 5.4 trillion kwanza ($51 billion) after slashing expected oil revenues. Oil accounts for about half of Angola's GDP, 80 percent of tax revenues and 90 percent of export earnings. State-owned news agency, Angop reports that the revised plan forecasts a budget deficit of 7 percent of GDP, a shortfall that could be partially covered by Angola's $26 billion in foreign exchange reserves. This was the first time Angola had posted a deficit since 2009.
International Diamond Week Seen as Success – But How Much Business Done?
02 march 2015
Although organizers of the Israel Diamond Exchange's (IDE) February 8-12 International Diamond Week praised the success of the latest edition of the show, it was less clear if the event created business or just a lot of meetings and networking. The diamond week featured a large delegation from the Diamond Dealers Club (DDC) of New York and it was also the first edition to feature a delegation of diamantaires from the Antwerp Diamond Bourse and another from Turkey. The event also featured a high-level signing ceremony of a Memorandum of Understanding between the IDE and Russian diamond mining giant Alrosa.
Indian diamond market in January
24 february 2015
Year 2015 started off on a good note for the Indian diamond industry, which was still revelling in the partnership struck with ALROSA during the previous month when 12 contracts were signed by leading industry players, renewals and new. Trading in the diamond district of Mumbai picked up gusto with overseas buyers seen in plenty from main consumer markets. However, of late the Indian markets struggle with continued liquidity problems attributed to less availability of finance as well as delays in overseas payments.
Israeli diamantaires aiming to open new markets via fancy shape expertise
16 february 2015
There are thousands of manufacturers and sellers worldwide of standard round diamonds. The American market, and those of other countries, are saturated with them in all shapes, colors and clarities, particularly in lower-priced commercial shapes of one carat and under. That's not to say that fancy shape diamonds are a new product with few competitors. As with round stones, there are many manufacturers and traders. But the range of shapes gives players in the market more options in terms of marketing the diamonds.
Diamond business on the backdrop of economic instability in Russia
09 february 2015
When the Oppenheimer family sold its 40-percent stake in De Beers to Anglo American for $ 5.3 billion in 2013, thereby terminating their almost century-old ownership of diamond business, this event brought about significant changes to the structure and organization of the world diamond market.
Bourses turning trading halls into trade shows to create business
02 february 2015
The fourth edition of the International Diamond Week at the Israel Diamond Exchange due to take place from February 8 to 12, following the sixth edition of the Antwerp Diamond Trade Fair at the beginning of February, coming two months after the third Israel Diamond Week event at the New York Diamond Dealers Club (DDC) last November and the Indian Diamond Week at the DDC before that shows a clear pattern. Good ideas are quickly copied – and in these instances it is clearly for the good of the global diamond industry.
Diamantaires concerned as AMS mistakes natural diamonds for synthetic
26 january 2015
Six months have passed since De Beers unveiled a revolutionary device for detection of small synthetic diamonds - the Automated Melee Screening Device (AMS). However, initial results produced by the use of this device designed to protect the market from lab-made stones are not very reassuring. In the opinion of diamantaires using the device, they are now faced with the opposite problem: AMS identifies some part of natural diamonds as being synthetic.
ALROSA brings in ‘good cheer’ for Indian diamond industry
19 january 2015
Full marks to the Gems & Jewellery Export Promotion Council of India (GJEPC), the apex body of gems and jewellery trade, for organizing the first ever World Diamond Conference in India, in association with the World Diamond Mark Foundation (WDMF) and supported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India on December 11 and 12, 2014 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, India. The highlight of the two day congregation of global diamond leaders, was the presence of Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, at the inaugural function on December 11, 2014.
Synthetic Diamonds: Response Adequate to Challenge
12 january 2015
In 2010, Rough & Polished predicted the imminent emergence of industrial infrastructure in China engaged in production of synthetic diamonds using the CVD technology, as well as the inflow of large amounts of small white synthetic diamonds mixed with natural diamonds to the market. In 2012, the first massive "cocktail" of this kind was detected by the IGI laboratory. In 2013 and 2014, the sales of synthetic diamonds under the guise of natural turned to be quite frequent. At first glance, the problem may be solved by creating an appropriate legislative framework and by introducing affordable and high-performance monitoring equipment. However, if you look at the closest analogue - the modern market of colored gemstones, your optimism may a little bit fade.
