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Natural Diamond Council to Get Big Funding Boost

The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) may soon receive a significant cash injection, thanks to the Luanda Accord—an agreement between six diamond-producing nations, one cutting center, and two gem hubs to fund the promotion of natural diamonds. It was signed June 18 in Angola’s capital city. Signatories to the agreement include Botswana, Angola, Sierra Leone, Namibia, […]

How to define conflict diamonds?

The Kimberley Process (KP) intersessional meeting in Dubai marked what the World Diamond Council (WDC) called a “significant breakthrough” toward expanding the definition of conflict diamonds — a long-overdue step in modernizing the KP and restoring some of its lost relevance. The current definition, unchanged since the KP’s inception in 2000, narrowly focuses on rough […]

Do Consumers Really Care About Diamond Origin?

The most striking moment during the Rapaport Breakfast at the JCK show on June 8 came during the question-and-answer session. Aleah Arundale, founder of the “Jewelers Helping Jewelers” Facebook page, strode to the mic and upbraided the guest speaker, De Beers CEO Al Cook, for De Beers’ new marketing plan, which talks about—among other things—the benefits diamonds bring […]

Laboratory-grown diamonds: facts and figures

The Natural Diamond Council has just published a new “Diamond Facts” report with updated data on laboratory-grown diamonds, based on facts and figures revealed by experts and currently available studies. The “Diamond Facts” reports, which condense the essential information on current topics into around 15 pages, are undoubtedly one of the Natural Diamond Council’s best […]

How De Beers CEO Al Cook Hopes to Turn His Company Around

Following De Beers’ annual Friday breakfast at the JCK show in Las Vegas, CEO Al Cook spoke with JCK about the flurry of initiatives he announced at the event, plus recent reports about sightholder deals and possible attempts by two former De Beers CEOs to purchase the company.. Any thoughts on the reports that two of your predecessors, Bruce Cleaver and […]

Taking Diamond Tracing to the Next Level 

Companies are leveraging nanotech, blockchain, machine learning, and more to make stones easier to track. In the past, jewelry clients would rank authenticity, value, durability and rarity as essential qualities when deciding on a diamond or gemstone, with mine-to-market traceability being desirable but not vital. Fast forward to 2025, and many customers now consider a […]

In Botswana, diamonds lie at the heart of an ethical and sustainable economic model

As the world’s second-largest diamond supplier, Botswana has established itself over several decades as a unique example of African economic success. By managing its natural resources responsibly and ethically – through a strategic partnership with De Beers in particular – the country has been able to transform this wealth into a lever for national development. […]

Tiffany & Co.’s Zero-Pronged Approach

An innovative setting technique from New Zealand-based jeweler Floeting has made its way into the luxury retailer’s Titan collection. For the top jewelry houses today, the new battleground is not only producing recognizable designs and getting the biggest fashion stars as ambassadors but also displaying diamond expertise and credibility.   Enter Tiffany & Co., which has […]

Jewelry: Continued Growth in 2024

2024 Key Figures Watchmaking – Jewelry After an exceptional 2023, the French jewelry sector continued its upward trend in 2024. According to recent data published by Francéclat, French production reached record sales of 6.1 billion euros, marking a 6% increase on the previous year.This growth was also reflected in employment, with a 1% increase in the […]