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RapNet: 1-ct. diamond prices down 1 percent
The RapNet Diamond Index for October shows continued softness in polished diamond prices, with trading improved but sales still below last year’s levels.
New York--The RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI) for October shows continued softness in polished diamond prices, with trading improved but sales still below last year’s levels.
According to data released earlier this week by Rapaport, the RAPI for 1-carat, Gemological Institute of America-graded diamonds fell 1 percent in October and is down 8 percent year-to-date.
While 1-carat diamond prices continue to slip, the greatest decline so far this year has been in the price of 0.30 carat diamonds, with prices falling 20 percent between Jan. 1 and Nov. 1, the RAPI shows. Double-digit drops also were recorded for half-carat stones (down 18 percent) and 3-carat diamonds (down 14 percent) in that time period.
Overall, the Rapaport Monthly Report shows that market conditions remained virtually unchanged in October.
With weak demand in Hong Kong and China, dealers still are betting high on the holiday season in the United States. As Rapaport put it, “all eyes (are) on the U.S. retail sector,” particularly in light of the marketing efforts with the two-stone ring at Signet Jewelers and the re-launch of “A Diamond is Forever” by De Beers for its branded diamond, Forevermark.
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On the rough manufacturing side, margins remained squeezed and there is continued consolidation in the mid-stream. The miners are holding on to rough and reducing production--De Beers, for example, cut third quarter production by nearly 30 percent--while continuing to decrease prices.
Rapaport said that rough prices need to decline by at least 20 percent to ensure reasonable profit margins in the middle market.
The market “continues to be challenging in 2015,” Rapaport noted.
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