Mixed results at Sotheby's Australia
Sotheby’s Australia’s first jewellery sale in Sydney has mixed reviews. On the one hand rare quality pieces sold above estimate: a 5 carat diamond ring sold for $28,000 well above the high estimate of $18,000 and an exquisite gem-set diamond and pearl necklace (estimated $7,000-10,000) sold for $26,000. However, the featured lot, a very rare, fancy purplish-red Argyle diamond ring estimated to sell between $642,000 and $916,000 failed to sell. The Australian auction house is exploring new markets since Sotheby’s sold its licence to Australian businessman and auctioneer, Tim Goodman.
507 carat diamond comes to auction
The Cullinan Heritage Diamond which is an astounding 507 carats in size was recovered from the illustrious Cullinan mine, which has produced the majority of the world’s most famous and important diamonds. The Cullinan Heritage is one of the top 20 largest high quality rough diamonds ever discovered. Petra Diamonds Limited intends to complete tender towards the end of February 2010.
Are things looking up for De Beers?
De Beers’ recent reduction in production and closure of mines has been much talked about in the diamond industry. However the company is now saying that they saw a slowdown in the market as early as Christmas 2007 and that these measures were part of the company’s business strategy. Although they admit that they did not expect the downturn to be as bad as it is. By mining less during the recession means they have more diamonds for when the economy turns around. And prices have started to increase in the cutting structures in the past few months. A survey conducted by De Beers showed that there is no change in the attitude to owning diamonds, however, there is a preference now for more classic pieces, such as solitaire rings or ear studs.
Sotheby's sells very rare blue diamond for record price
At Sotheby Geneva’s Magnificent Jewels sale on 12th May 2009, a rare fancy vivid blue flawless diamond sold for $9,488,754, well above its estimate of $5.8-8.5 million. The 7.04 carat diamond set records for the price paid per carat for any gemstone sold at auction and the highest price for a fancy vivid blue diamond sold at auction. The buyer, who wished to remain anonymous, will have naming rights over the stone.
Diamond prices fell by about 50 per cent on average between September and October 2008. The diamond industry was hit with lower demand coupled with freezing credit conditions after the Lehman Brothers collapse. Gem Diamonds raised £75m through a share placing with institutional investors, including large shareholders Lansdowne Partners and Blackrock. The two biggest diamond producers, De Beers and Alrosa, have cut output which has helped stabilise the market. However, analysts still feel that the diamond industry has far from recovered from the affects of the economic crisis.
Although the price for five to ten carat D-flawless diamonds are down, exceptional stones are still in large demand. Believing that the UHNWIs are less affected by the recession, many in the jewellery trade are going after these extraordinary diamonds in an effort to service that aspect of the market.
These extremely rare diamonds are believed to be holding their value with prices up from 12 months ago. Keith Gerrard, Managing Director of Leviev says, “The very high-end clientele is increasingly choosing our extraordinary diamonds as a safe, tangible, secure component of their wealth portfolio.”
