diamonds

There were shortages in select categories as manufacturers levels were restrained in the fourth quarter.

A diamond press that used to take up half a room can now sit on my desk. If you can only make ten stones a year, you're not going to have the market for lab grown diamonds. The result being enough material to be commercially viable.

Diamond dealers have drastically reduced their purchases from diamond cutters which has affected the overall market flow. Diamond dealers also expect that jewelry manufacturers will follow suit and not purchase new inventory for the upcoming holidays. As of July there was little rough diamond cutting and manufacturing coming into the market with plenty of polished available.

The amount of goods deferred or outright refused was less than in previous years. Manufacturers are expected to begin ramping up their polished production from the current levels by the end of June. De Beer’s diamond boxes were trading on the secondary market at very slight premiums and with credit terms of up to 90 days.

Often times jewelry and diamond websites that do exist are neglected, uncompleted, mismanaged or simply abandoned during the construction. This can hurt your brand. Once you make the commitment to go online, the importance of a functioning jewelry website is of the utmost importance.

While few dealers argued that point, manufacturers countered that there not only being squeezed by reduced bank credit, but by rough prices remain high in a declining polished market. DeBeers maintained relatively stable prices at the December site, which closed with an estimated value of $600 million. Rapaport estimates that DeBeers rough sales rose 14% to more than $6.5 billion in 2014, boosted by price appreciation and a stronger than usual second half of the year.

"The DeBeers stock at the time of Asian currency crisis of 1997/1998 had a value of several billion dollars. Our senior management questioned whether holding such a large stock was a sustainable and efficient use of capital," Davies said, "and this triggered a strategic review that resulted in a decision to liquidate the stockpile over a number of years." Responding to that claim, Vanderlinden said, "we can only take them at their word. Nobody really knows. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle."

Surprisingly, Canada's production has actually fallen 5 percent to $1.91 billion in 2013, however Canada is still ranked as the third-largest producer of diamonds worldwide. In regards to volume, Canada's production has risen around 1 percent to its peak at 10.565 million carats. Meanwhile, the average price declined 6 percent to $180.52 per carat. Canada is followed by Namibia. Namibia's production has risen 15 percent this year to $1.36 billion from 1.689 million carats as the average price also jumped a heaping 46 percent to $805.24 per carat. This jump was a profound one. Angola is found finishing up the top 5 countries in their production rankings. Angola has production up 15 percent hitting $1.28 billion from 9.36 million carats and an average price that has risen 2 percent to $136.49 per carat.

He makes sure to stress the vast importance of creating a unique niche for yourself or a selling point that will attract and retain buyers in this business. He believes that a strong branding background will aid manufacturers in the market to improve their profits. With clients that are constantly looking for something unique in today's market, companies that lack this distinctive selling point or a unique product will find it more difficult to take their share of the market. "Competition today is much stronger because of the growing technology and internet, and not only in the diamond and jewelry business. Companies that are not looking a few steps to the future will not be in the game," says Siman-Tov. At the close of July, diamond business flat due to the competition in the market. Trading patters in the IDE remained quiet with activity further impacted by the U.S summer vacation. Barmecha notes that although locally the market was a bit more quiet, the overseas orders put in were sufficient enough to spur business.

Detailed information about discounts that apply to the Rapaport Price Lists can be found online on Rapaport's diamond trading networks. These discounts can also be found in their Trade Sheets which are published in their monthly magazine "Rapaport" magazine. The level to which the discount or premium is applied varies greatly, and is influenced by the many moving parts and factors of the diamond industry. These factors include stone quality and cuts, credit/memo terms, the location and type of market and the liquidity level of particular size -quality combinations. The associated risk of ownership and liquidity also play as important factors. The faster a diamond moves, or sells, the lower the discounts are to the Rapaport Price Lists. Diamonds that prove to be harder to sell in the trade are offered larger discounts. Diamonds that are high in demand, or scarce diamonds may trade at premium to the Rapaport Price Lists.