DIAMONDS: The De Beers Diamond Trading Company (DTC) raised prices on some categories of rough diamonds at the March 26–30 sight, which totaled about $650 million. According to executives familiar with the sight, low-to-medium qualities destined mainly for mass-market jewelry took the brunt of the average 3% to 5% increase.

Diamond manufacturers worldwide have been grappling with dwindling profits and rising debts, so a price increase would appear out of place. However, many of them had been anticipating that the DTC and other producers would trim rough sales to help relieve pressure on sightholders, so they began bidding up rough boxes to insure they had ample supplies. Typically, the DTC raises prices when box premiums spike, and this is what they did at the March sight.

Two major producers reported strong sales last year, one that many manufacturers labeled “challenging.” Aber Resources of Canada saw its rough sales increase 6% to $332.6 million. Meanwhile, Russia’s diamond mining and marketing group, Alrosa, logged rough sales of $2.86 billion − a 2.4% increase over 2005 − despite a European Union–enforced reduction in its sales to the DTC.

In the polished market, U.S. sales of diamond jewelry items declined by the number of pieces during 2006, though strong demand at the top end resulted in a 6% increase in dollar sales, according to De Beers’s Diamond Promotion Service 2006 market survey. U.S. diamond jewelry sales totaled $35.2 billion, just shy of 50% of worldwide sales.

Action at the top end meant that the average retail ticket rose 9.1% in 2006, while the number of transactions declined by 2.7%. However, the total retail value for the diamond engagement ring category grew 8% to $6.2 billion – again largely through price increases.

De Beers’s Journey diamond jewelry concept sold more than one million pieces during the second half of 2006, for a growth rate of 41% over 2005. Journey piece sales surpassed sales of three-stone diamond jewelry, though the latter’s sales also rose 16% to nearly $3.7 billion, with a 14% increase in average price tickets during the year.

COLORED STONES: Representatives of the Thai Gem and Jewelry Traders Association (TGJTA) and Japan Jewelry Association (JJA) said that they have signed a memorandum of understanding regarding disclosure of beryllium (Be)-diffusion treatment in corundum within the trade.

Both parties resolved to establish a set of similar disclosure standards for Be-diffusion, with support from gem laboratories in both countries. Both parties will also ask their local gem labs to conduct joint research in order to strengthen disclosure procedures.

In addition, Jewellery News Asia reported that TGJTA proposed creating a “Cluster Blue Sapphire Group” that would export only non-Be-diffusion-treated corundum to Japan. The TGJTA would then make the list of member companies available to the Japan Jewellery Association.

MACRO: Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke ruled out interest rate cuts in the near term despite evidence of a slowing U.S. economy.

Interest rate increases have hit the U.S. housing market and have raised the cost of business across the board, including the diamond industry worldwide.

However, the Federal Reserve chairman noted that the central bank would remain flexible in responding to developing economic conditions.

Many economists had expected the Federal Reserve to trim interest rates in response to the crisis in the sub-prime mortgage market and a decline in business spending.

Rising gasoline prices, sour mortgage news, and sagging stock market prices undermined consumer confidence in March, a widely watched index showed on Tuesday.

The New York−based Conference Board said that its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 107.2, down from the revised 111.2 in February. Analysts had expected a reading of 109. The March index was the lowest since November 2006, when the reading was 105.3.

“Apprehension about the short-term future has suddenly cast a cloud over consumers’ confidence,” said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center.

Russell Shor
Senior Industry Analyst

The readers have voted, and Gems & Gemology is pleased to announce the winners of the Dr. Edward J. Gübelin Most Valuable Article Award for 2006.

The first-place article was “The Impact of Internal Whitish and Reflective Graining on the Clarity Grading of D-to-Z Color Diamonds at the GIA Laboratory” (Winter 2006). John M. King, Thomas M. Moses, and Wuyi Wang reviewed the elusive nature of this type of graining in diamonds and the methodology that GIA graders use to determine its impact on diamond clarity grades.

Receiving second place was “Identification and Durability of Lead Glass–Filled Rubies” (Spring 2006). Shane F. McClure, Christopher P. Smith, Wuyi Wang, and Matthew Hall reported on this new corundum treatment and the techniques to identify it.

Third place was awarded to “‘Paraíba’-type Copper-bearing Tourmaline from Brazil, Nigeria, and Mozambique: Chemical Fingerprinting by LA-ICP-MS” (Spring 2006). Ahmadjan Abduriyim, Hiroshi Kitawaki, Masashi Furuya, and Dietmar Schwarz described how this sensitive technique for chemical analysis, laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry, can separate bright blue-to-green copper-bearing tourmaline from the three localities in which it has been found.

Gems & Gemology is also proud to introduce the print version of its Twenty-Five Year Index (1981–2005). This comprehensive reference contains thousands of subject and author listings to help you quickly find the information you need from the past quarter-century of G&G. The Twenty-Five Year Index is available for only $14.95 ($19.95 outside the U.S.). Order your copy by clicking here or contacting circulation coordinator Debbie Ortiz.

For most people, jade evokes an image of a brilliant green gemstone. Surprising to many, it also occurs as luminous examples of many other colors including white, orange, and lavender. Because of its beauty and durability, jade has been treasured around the world for millennia.

The public is invited to explore the world of jade at the Fifth Annual Sinkankas Symposium, to be held Saturday, April 21, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. at the GIA Robert Mouawad Campus, 5345 Armada Drive in Carlsbad, Calif. Registration, coffee, and donuts start at 8 a.m., and lunch is included in the price of admission.

The Sinkankas Symposium is co-hosted by the San Diego Mineral & Gem Society and the Gemological Institute of America (GIA). Named in honor of the renowned gemologist, author, and lapidary John Sinkankas, the event will devote a full day of discussions, lectures, and demonstrations to this lustrous gem, led by an impressive list of experts in a wide variety of fields. Members of more than five different local gem and mineral clubs, from Los Angeles to Fallbrook, plan to attend.

Topics will range from types of jade, such as jadeite and nephrite, new discoveries, photography, carving, appraising, and many other issues.  Many jade items will be on display as well.

Some of the speakers and their topics include: Fred Ward, National Geographic author and photographer, on Jades of the World; Si Frazier, author, on Nomenclature of Jade; Don Kay of Mason Kay Importers on Burmese Jadeite Jewelry; and John Koivula, GIA gemstone inclusion expert, on the Microworld of Jade.

Also on the list is Richard Hughes, author and gem authority, on Burmese Jade Deposits; Mary Lou Ridinger, Guatemalan jade expert, with the Current Guatemalan Jade Market; and George Rossman, professor of mineralogy at the California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech), on the Causes of Color in Jade.

The price for admission is $75 per person; and April 14^th is the deadline for getting a ticket. Past events have sold out. The registration form is available by contacting Anne Schafer of the San Diego Mineral & Gem Society at 858-586-1637 or annes@san.rr.com.

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) presented the second address in its 2007 Museum Lecture Series, “A Synergy of Art and Science,” on Wednesday, April 3. This special presentation featured award-winning jewelry designer Marianne Hunter, who shared how her techniques combine a variety of materials to create an “Inspirational Interplay: The Collaboration of Arts and Materials.”

“Marianne’s pieces incorporate gemstones, enamels, and precious metals with poetry and symbolism that her fans say seems to bring out people's emotions, imaginations, and even inspiration,” said Elise Misiorowski, director of the GIA Museum.

Hunter says her defining moment in life was when she was given a hobby enameling kit after high school. Largely self-taught, she learned the enameling process and metalsmithing, and then, through experimentation, came up with techniques of her own.

She says each piece is a story she tells herself while she works. She begins the design process by searching for the theme, and the inspiration can come from anywhere: a gem, a personal experience, a careful study, or the flash of an idea. The sustaining theme is always to articulate the beauty, mystery, and benevolence of the world.

Each piece is unique and is completed with an engraving of its title, individual number, date and Hunter’s signature. A poem written especially for the piece is etched on the back of the item as well. Each piece is registered to its owner.

Hunter’s work is on display in several museums in the U.S. (including the Smithsonian), Canada, and Japan, and has graced numerous books, including the Art of Fine Enameling and Art Jewelry Today.

The GIA Museum has been hosting the Museum Lecture Series since 2001. GIA students and staff hear the lecture in the afternoon, and invited guests attend that evening's lecture. Both presentations are typically given to capacity audiences; the student venue accommodates about 75 people, and the evening event about 180. Each evening lecture sells out mere days after the invitation is mailed.

The mission of the GIA Museum is to increase awareness about gems, jewelry, gemology, and related topics through exhibits, lectures, and programs that educate and engage the public and the trade. The Museum strives to reach and motivate local, national, and international audiences.

The Museum was established in 2001.

• New York: Gem Identification (Saturdays, April 7–May 5), Colored Stone Grading (April 23–25), Diamond Grading (April 30–May 4), and Student Workroom (April 9–13 and 16–20).
• Chicago, IL: Diamond Grading (April 9–13), Gem Identification (April 16–20), Colored Stone Grading (April 23–25), Pearl Grading (April 26), and Student Workroom (April 17–22).
• Los Angeles: Diamond Grading (April 16–20).
• Carlsbad: Gem Identification (at night, April 16–May 1), Colored Stone Grading (April 9–11), Pearl Grading (April 12), and Student Workroom (Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.).

For information on U.S. Lab classes or other GIA seminars click here, call 800-421-7250, ext. 4001, or e-mail GIA Education. Outside the U.S., call 760-603-4001. To apply online, click here.