Dmitry Fedorov: I want our jewelry to be displayed at a museum in the future

Dmitry Fedorov is the founder of the eponymous jewelry house. His main focus is the creation of Orthodox-inspired premium luxury jewelry of high artistic merit. He told Rough&Polished about his journey in the jewelry industry, about choosing the ‘Orthodox...

28 october 2024

Responsible business practices ‘no longer optional’, says WDC President Feriel Zerouki

The president of the World Diamond Council takes time out of her busy schedule to tell Rough&Polished readers about the critical work of the WDC. Zerouki, the first female present of the body, which includes all the important industry organizations among...

14 october 2024

James Campbell: Botswana Diamonds optimistic as it enters uncharted territory of using AI for mineral exploration

London-listed Botswana Diamonds has expressed optimism about the company’s use of artificial intelligence (AI) to scan the exploration database in Botswana to look for new mineralised deposits. Company managing director James Campbell told Rough...

07 october 2024

Artur Salyakayev: For me, happiness is freedom to make my ideas happen and create valuable products

Artur Salyakayev is an art entrepreneur, founder of the International Jewelry Academy (IJA) and the INCRUA jewelry company. He has initiated and developed successful projects in jewelry industry and services sector. He is also a leading expert...

30 september 2024

Paul Zimnisky: China key for sustained recovery in demand for natural diamonds, prices

The curtailing of upstream and midstream natural diamond production in the past months is starting to have an effect on prices, according to the New-York-based independent diamond and jewellery analyst and consultant, Paul Zimnisky. He told Rough & Polished’s...

23 september 2024

World automakers are switching from palladium to platinum due to sanctions on Russia

30 may 2022
The World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) said global automakers are intensifying their efforts to reduce the use of palladium and increase the use of platinum in their cars due to the situation around Russia.
Russia accounts for about 25-30% of world supplies of palladium and about 8-10% of platinum. At the moment, there are no signs that the Russian Federation is going to limit the export of palladium, but there are fears that companies may boycott the Russian metal, and governments may impose restrictions on its purchase. Therefore, according to WPIC head of research Trevor Raymond, efforts to replace palladium have skyrocketed amid concerns about its availability.
However, there is a second point, which amid continuously rising prices cannot be ignored: platinum is cheaper than palladium. At around $950 an ounce (28.3 grams), platinum is about half the price of palladium. Automakers, on the other hand, require about 2.5-3 million ounces of platinum and about 8.5 million ounces of palladium annually.
In the automotive industry, palladium is used together with platinum in catalytic converters. Palladium finds more use in gasoline engines, while platinum in diesel engines.