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RAPAPORT... Diamdel offered and sold 218 lots of rough diamonds at its second cycle of auctions, which was held from April 13 through May 3, 2011. Diamdel noted that 161 different businesses participated and 72 companies placed the winning bids. Firms from Belgium, Israel, and India and from across the Asia Pacific vied for Diamdel rough in this recent auction.
Diamdel observed that rough demand remained strong across the board with price growth experienced in sizes above 2-carat, as well as for grainers and smalls. Interestingly enough, prices for near-gem and large ranges stabilized from recent highs.
By value, 68 percent of lots were sold to non-sightholders and 32 percent of the lots were purchased by sightholders. Sales were noticeably softer to larger firms while buying was strong to specialist dealers who focus on a narrow range of goods.
Neil Ventura, Diamdel's chief executive, said, ''Whilst global demand fell back slightly from recent record highs, most notably from Antwerp and Israel based buyers, demand across all markets did remain at higher levels than at any point in 2010.
''Indeed, consistent demand from Indian based buyers saw them gain a greater share of sales and record demand from Asia Pacific translated into record spot sales to buyers in Hong Kong and mainland China. We continue to anticipate strong demand across all product ranges in the near term,'' he stated.
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