Alrosa's July Sales Down 79 per cent
August 10, 20-645x.jpg)
(IDEX Online) - Alrosa today reported another month of weak sales, with rough and polished totaling just $35.8m for July, down 79 per cent on last year.
The Russian state-owned miner is widely reported to be seeking another rescue deal to sell up to $1bn of rough to Gokhran, the finance ministry's precious metals and gems repository.
Alrosa negotiated a similar deal, also for $1bn, during the 2008-9 global financial crisis, according to the Moscow-based Kommersant newspaper.
Sales for last month comprised $22.7m of rough and £13.2m of polished. The overall $35.8m total was up on April's rock bottom of just $15.6m. There was a slight bounce May to $40.1m, followed by a dip in June to $31.3m. Its sales in July 2019 were $170.5m.
Alrosa said it had been offering unprecedented flexibility to its long-term clients during "extremely challenging market conditions".
Deputy CEO Evgeny Agureev said: "In July, we successfully auctioned +10.8 carats' diamonds in Israel and Belgium. We also sold expensive rough on spot. As a result, the average realized price of gem-quality diamonds in July increased by 9x compared this year's average.
"As for the terms of the August trading session and the possibility of offering our clients an option to defer purchases, the decision has not been taken yet."
Pic shows Alrosa mining in Yakutia