Data Suppliers: Index Feedback

“Consumer markets that purchase large pinks and blues diamonds are impacted by the global economic slowdown and the geopolitical uncertainties. The decline of the demand for larger goods - which represent larger total amounts - is thus a consequence of the general economic environment and will adjust back when growth picks up. In the meantime and given the short supply of such items we don’t anticipate more than a marginal price decline”

“Whatever may be the state of the economy, there will always be someone out there looking for something exceptionally rare…
The people who are generally in the market for such very important and impressive diamonds are more immune to economic downturns than other market segments…
The amount of large pinks and blues available in the world is finite and generally held in strong hands. So, it is a case of a waiting game…"

Also, the number of new billionaires and inherited generational wealth around the world is likely to outgrow the number of new important and exceptional pink and blue diamonds being either mined or released to the market. New wealth generally gravitates towards rarity.
Therefore, the current softening in demand is highly likely to return without the prices having to drop”

"Having been in the business for nearly 50 years now and involved in fancy colors from the very early days, I personally have always had much more confidence in smaller sizes (up to 5 cts), and whenever I buy, my cardinal rule was and is the saturation/strength and attractiveness of the color in the diamond. The larger sizes are suffering from cyclical macroeconomic pressures but they will recover, just not sure when."

Several of the major brands decided to enhance their presence in fancy color diamonds, especially in certain categories of yellow diamonds. These heavy demands on the market drove prices up over the last 12 months and severely diminished supplies of polished yellow diamonds. In addition, several of the major manufacturers saw these increased demands and bought up large stockpiles of yellow rough, further increasing the price. We also saw less rough coming from Russia further diminishing the overall rough supply of yellow to the market. All of These factors combined to drive the price up for the foreseeable future.

Yellows have finally received it’s true value in the market, the decades of creating awareness in the fancy color space has given importance. There are a lot more players (suppliers and customers) today than 5 years ago, and a lot more end consumers wanting something different, beyond colorless diamonds.

Honestly the idea of rarity, difficulty of supply, and high demand is perpetually going to be the case in fancy colors. But there are many small elements that lead to large results such as this.

The trend and need of the hour is the traceability and country of origin in our industry, and in fancy colors, yellow diamonds are easy entrants as well as easier than others to get the traceability option.

The popularity of yellow diamonds has grown, mainly due to a change in trends from the major brands like Tiffany and Cartier, who, along with increasing demand from China, have been promoting yellow diamonds in all categories.
Naturally, this has led to a bigger demand for rough. The trend has trickled down and is causing increased demand for yellow diamonds across the retail diamond industry.

Unfortunately, there is still rough coming from these countries despite all of the restrictions. Most of it seems to be going through Dubai and being mixed in with other rough. From what I’ve seen, controlling it seems impossible.

Most of the price increase is influenced by demand. The price increase is mainly in specific categories.
The increase in those categories is moderately driving up the price of other fancy color diamonds.
Russia is not a major source of fancy color diamonds the way it is for colorless stones.
Its decline in sales is not the main reason for the rise in fancy color prices.

I don't work with Zimbabwe or Liberia, and after the sanctions, I stopped working with Russia, so I don't know about rough acquisition from those countries.

Reduced supply is a major cause of the price increases. Certain segments of the trade also saw increased buying, which caused prices to increase.

Of course, there should be an impact on people who purchase rough from these sources. But the lack of mine-to-market tracking allows things to fall through the cracks.

The popularity of yellow diamonds has led to stockpile depletion across various industries. The embargo on Alrosa's merchandise and South Africa's dominance in larger diamonds have affected availability. Retail chains have exhausted 1.50 to 5.00 carat VS1 clarity diamonds, and some pairs have vanished from the market.
These market conditions will increase prices in many segments. Alrosa products will find their way to Dubai and India while also meeting local demand instead of reaching European and American markets.
Higher interest rates will further squeeze profit margins. Nevertheless, the healthy market and demand will necessitate price increases, with an expected quarterly growth of 10-15%.

Traceability and sustainability requirements will limit product availability due to modest production in Canada, Australia, and parts of Africa. Miners often source materials from multiple locations, resulting in a mixed production.