News
Lundin achieves record quarterly gold output at its flagship Ecuador mine
Vancouver-based Lundin Gold has reported that in the third quarter of 2026, gold production at its Fruta del Norte mine in southeast Ecuador hit a new quarterly record.
Today
Richemont, Signet in talks to join De Beers consortium – report
Luxury group Richemont and US retailer Signet Jewelers are in advanced talks to join the Global Diamond Consortium (GDC) bidding for De Beers, according to five people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reports.
16 october 2026
Rio Tinto begins Q4 of 2026 with strong operational performance
The Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto has reported its third-quarter 2026 results, highlighting strong operational performance.
16 october 2026
Silver market deficit to widen in 2026 - report
In the latest World Silver Survey prepared by the Silver Institute and Metals Focus, the global silver market deficit is forecast to widen for the sixth consecutive year to 46.3 million ounces.
16 october 2026
Tharisa signs PGM offtake deal with Valterra Platinum, expands chrome collaboration
South Africa’s Tharisa has entered a binding arrangement for the sale of PGM concentrate to Rustenburg Platinum Mines, a subsidiary of Valterra Platinum, effective 1 January 2027.
16 october 2026
Courting Catastrophe: Tulip Mania and Diamond Mania
27 december 2016
(n-rothmann.com) - In 1554 Ogier de Busbecq, the ambassador of Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I to the court of Suleiman the Magnificent, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, returned to Vienna from Constantinople carrying the first tulip bulbs ever seen in Western Europe. Little did he know that this simple act would set off a chain of events resulting in the first speculative bubble in recorded history. It would become known as Tulip Mania.The popularity of a diamond as a means of investment in the late 1970s coincided with general growth in the commodity investment market. But the fact is that diamonds have always had difficulty in conforming to the profile of a typical commodity. But despite both this and also the trauma of the investment bubble of the 1970s and 1980s, many diamond dealers still fantasize about selling their products as they would a commodity, believing that this will open another sales avenue.
Diamond Market Outlook – Outlook is improving
26 december 2016
(insights.abnamro.nl) - In this publication: Diamond trade data paint a far more optimistic picture than in June, signalling that trade has turned the corner. We expect diamond trade to further improve in 2017. We also expect jewellery demand to improve slightly in 2017 driven by a lower US savings rate and an improvement in Chinese jewellery demand. Rough and polished prices will likely rise at a modest pace in 2017, reflecting an improvement in end-demand.
Barneys and Diamond Foundry Are Making a Big Mistake With Their Lab-Grown Diamond Line
23 december 2016
(jckonline.com) - While it’s hardly the most pressing issue in the world right now, I am disappointed with Diamond Foundry and Barneys New York’s decision to use the word cultivated for their new line of lab-grown diamonds. The Barneys release calls the stones cultivated — which is not, at press time, one of the terms the Federal Trade Commission has okayed for lab-grown diamonds. Diamond Foundry said in response, “Our diamonds being man-made is the whole point of our marketing, which we are very clear about. This is consistent with FTC principles of making sure that consumers get what they think they get.” However, when asked her view if the term was sufficient under the FTC Guides, Jewelers Vigilance Committee president and CEO Cecilia Gardner replied, “Nope.”
5 Takeaways on the Lab-Grown Diamond Market
22 december 2016
(nationaljeweler.com) - A few weeks ago in New York, I had the opportunity to attend a day-long forum on lab-grown, or synthetic, diamonds organized by the U.S. Jewelry Council. The purpose of the forum was not for the mined diamond industry to align itself against the diamond growers; in fact, it’s worth pointing out here that there are well-known diamond companies/dealers that have their hands in both. As just one example, Royal Asscher--a 162-year-old family business that invented the cut that still bears its name and cleaved what remains the largest diamond ever mined, the Cullinan--had a line of colored lab-grown diamond jewelry called Rebel Chique and now is part-owner of a company selling lab-grown diamonds on Amazon. Instead, the forum was put together to discuss the issue of undisclosed lab-grown diamonds, those stones that slip into the supply pipeline undetected. Here’s (some of) what I learned.
Landmark Ruling Forces Rough Diamond Refund
21 december 2016
(diamonds.net) - The Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE) ordered a dealer to cancel the sale of a rough diamond after he failed to comply with new guidelines requiring sellers to disclose if a stone has undergone value analysis using a Sarine Galaxy machine. The arbitration is the first of its kind, sources familiar with the case told Rapaport News. It comes after the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) adopted new rules in May aiming to keep a level playing field between both parties trading rough diamonds. According to the WFDB bylaws, sellers must inform buyers if a rough diamond has undergone inspection using the Galaxy machine, or any similar system that indicates the stone’s value. Failure to do so could annul the transaction and the seller could be subject to further claims.
