What a Wonderful Time It Is

1. According to recently published data and our own collected figures, jewelry sales keep growing. In the U.S., the largest diamond market, sales increased approximately 10%. All publicly-held jewelers reported double digit year-over-year increases in same store sales. This is true for both high-end and mass-market jewelers.

We find that jewelry shoppers want both fashion and different.

Next time you hear someone ask where all the polished diamond goods are going, (or is this is a bubble?), just keep in mind that we are in a global economic upswing.

2. Polished diamond wholesalers are gearing-up for the June Hong Kong show. After a fantastic March show in Hong Kong, a very good Basel show and now a stronger than anticipated Vegas showing, expectations are high that another successful show is in the offing. 

Naturally, polished diamond prices, on a sharp upwards incline since February, continue to hold strong. Those that are not buying now with the belief that prices may come down should know that speculative buying is already taking place. Traders are counting on continued price increases. 

Considering Point #1, sustainability of prices is not currently an issue.

3. The DTC increased prices again this week. The initial shock that many boxes were hiked by 10% (and more) eased after a closer examination showed that the assortments of many of them were improved. But that is just part of the story; the other part is that the market is willing to pay a lot more for rough. After all, look at where polished prices are going.

4. "They can destroy it if they want; it's not for us anyway." This near-angry statement was made to me today about what may transpire at the upcoming biannual Kimberley Process meeting in Kinshasa. The man that made this statement is one of the framers of KP. He is someone that put a lot of time and painstaking efforts into it and considers it his baby. In short – he truly cares.

His statement was made about African countries fighting tooth & nail to reach simple, consumer-favored solutions. "We don't need it [KP] to regulate trade between Antwerp and Mumbai. It was created because of [the wars that went on in] Africa," he added. 

Zimbabwe, et. al., can rock the boat to their hearts content, but if the boat capsizes, whom do you think will drown? Those that have great know-how and resources to float, or the poorest countries with little to no familiarity of the diamond industry outside of their mines? 

It's OK to want to change things in your favor, just make sure you don't end up destroying it for everyone, least of all, for yourself. 

The term "provenance" is currently circulating in our industry. The end consumers, (the ultimate clients), are asking where their luxury goods come from and how they are made. Given the positive direction of the points above, we have a good thing going, so let's ensure we protect it.

5. The sun is shining; consumers are buying, retailers are selling, prices are rising, banks are financing, and most will end the year making more than they did last year. Cool! As we walk in the sun, lets just keep our umbrellas handy, remembering that it might start raining. It's good to be prepared. The sun won't shine forever.

Have a peaceful and relaxing weekend. Luckily, there'll be a lot of hard work to do next week.