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Rapaport TradeWire July 20, 2017
Jul 21, 2017 8:48 AM
By Rapaport
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| July 20, 2017 | | RAPAPORT MARKET COMMENT |  | | Polished trading seasonally slow as US dealers return from vacation and Belgian and Israeli suppliers soon to begin theirs. Rapaport Melee Index (RMI™) stable in 2Q. Jewelers not yet benefiting from US stock-market boom as consumer spending remains cautious. China turning a corner as retail improvement boosts 2Q GDP growth +6.9%. Luk Fook 1Q same-store sales +5% with China +23%, Hong Kong/Macau +3%. De Beers 1H production +21% to 16.1M cts., sales +9% to 20M cts., average price -12% to $156/ct. Rio Tinto 2Q production -2% to 4.3M cts. Dominion Diamond Corp. to be sold to The Washington Companies for $1.2B. Signet appoints Virginia Drosos to CEO position as Mark Light retires. | | | RAPNET DIAMOND INDEX (RAPI™) | | | | Weekly | Monthly | Y2Y | | 0.30 ct | -0.39% | -1.92% | 2.23% | | 0.50 ct | -0.75% | -4.16% | -16.62% | | 1.00 ct | -0.12% | -1.19% | -7.57% | | 3.00 ct | 0.32% | -1.65% | 2.27% |  | | The RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI™) is the average asking price in hundred $/ct. of the 10 percent best priced diamonds, for each of the top 25 quality round diamonds (D-H, IF-VS2, GIA-graded, RapSpec-A3 and better) offered for sale on RapNet - Rapaport Diamond Trading Network. | | | | Market Reports | | |  | United States: Widening price gap between RapSpec A2, 3X, no-fluorescence diamonds, and lower-quality goods... |  |  | Belgium: Quiet market, with dealers in vacation mode ahead of the official summer break (July 31 to August 18)... | | |  | Israel: Reduced demand and rising inventory for 0.30 to 0.40 ct. diamonds, reversing the upward trend from earlier in the year... | | |  | India: Slow market, with disappointing US demand and selective Chinese orders... | | |  | Hong Kong: Jewelers shifting to lower price points are compromising on clarity rather than color... | | |  | | | WEEKLY NEWS | | retail | | | | Signet Names Drosos CEO as Light Retires | | Beauty and consumer-goods veteran will take over on August 1. |  | | | Luk Fook Extends Turnaround with Sales Boost | | Growth in China driving the jeweler’s overall performance. | | | | | Graff Nabs US Sales Boss from Sotheby’s | | Frank Everett has worked at Tiffany, Bulgari and Harry Winston. | | | | | US Jewelry-Store Sales Rise in May | | Consumer expectations have eased in the short term but are still upbeat. | | | | | industry | | | | De Beers Sees Production, Sales Volume Jump | | Lower-quality diamonds weigh on average price per carat. | | | | | Switch to Smaller Rough Dents Liqhobong Prices | | Firestone modifies processing plant after failing to capture finer stones. | | | | | Breakage Continues to Affect Renard Output | | Second-quarter production of 417,362 carats was below company’s projections. | | | | | mining | | | | Dominion Seals $1.2B Takeover by Washington | | Buyer plans to keep miner as standalone company and appoint new CEO. | | | | | Rain at Argyle Dampens Rio Tinto’s Diamond Offering | | Rough output declines 2% in the second quarter. | | | | | Rockwell CEO Quits as Business Rescue Continues | | Tjaart Willemse joined the miner less than a year ago. | | | | | Lucapa Closes in on London Listing | | Miner plans to float on AIM by the end of the year. | | | | | general | | | | Diamond in the Ruff: Dog Eats $16K Ring | | GIA not the only lab this 1.3-carat Forevermark stone has been through. | | | | | Richemont Watchmaking Head Joins Breitling | | Georges Kern will focus on developing the brand’s digital offering and expansion in Asia. | | | | | HRD Detects Topaz Imitating Diamonds | | Attempts to fool rough buyers are increasing, lab warns. | | | | | | FINANCE | | Diamond Industry Stock Report | | | | A string of mergers and acquisitions spurred gains in the mining sector in an otherwise steady week for diamond and jewelry stocks. Dominion Diamond Corp. rose (+8.9%) on news that The Washington Companies had agreed to buy it. Similarly, Gemfields went up (+8.4%) after Pallinghurst Resources said it would delist the gemstone miner once the two businesses merged. Big-box retailers Kohl’s (+6.9%) and Macy’s (+8.3%) increased, following a report that clothing stores had seen less of a decline than other sectors. | | | | | Contact Us |  |       | | © Copyright 2017 Martin Rapaport. All Rights Reserved. | | Rapaport®, TradeWire®, RapNet®, Index® and JNS® Jewelry News Service are registered trademarks. | |
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