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Newsletter May 21 | 2026 |
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| Ocean Dream Sells for a Record $17.3m The Ocean Dream, a 5.50-carat fancy vivid blue-green diamond, sold for a record $17.3 million at Christie's Geneva. It was a record price for a stone of its color and intensity - way above $9 million to $13 million pre-sale estimate and double the $8.65 million it fetched when it was first sold in May 2014, also at Christie's  |
| Watches of Switzerland: US Surge Drives Sales to $2.4bn Watches of Switzerland (WoS) reported a 13% increase in annual sales to $2.4 billion, driven largely by strong momentum in its US retail business. Over the 12 months to the end of April, US sales rose 24% in constant currency (18% reported), and now account for half of the company's total revenue. The 137 |
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| Chaos and Tear Gas as Swatch Launches AP Watch The launch of Swatch's latest watch collection - a collaboration with Audemars Piguet (AP), triggered scuffles, arrests, and temporary store closures as shoppers fought to get their hands on the $400 timepieces. Outside a Swatch store near Paris, police reportedly fired tear gas after a crowd of about |
| Signet is North America's Biggest Grossing Jeweler, Followed by Richemont Signet remained the biggest-grossing jeweler in North America by far in 2025, but Richemont replaced Walmart in the number two spot. LVMH slipped from fifth to six place and Macy's dropped from seventh to eighth place in National Jeweler magazine's annual State of the Majors report on $100m supersellers |
| Two Blues - Each with an $8.5m High Estimate Christie's New York is to sell two blue diamonds - both with estimates of $6.5 million to $8.5 million - on the same day at its Magnificent Jewels auction on 9 June. One is the largest fancy blue diamond ever offered at auction, the 31.62-carat pear-shaped Azure Blue, GIA-graded as potentially internally flawless. |
| High-Value Stones Boost Gem Diamonds' Revenue Gem Diamonds reported higher revenue for Q1 2026, driven by large, high‑value recoveries, even though the total volume of rough sold was lower than usual. The company reported total revenue of $32.1 million for the quarter, which includes an exceptional parcel of 10 large diamonds (363 carats) that |
| Production Halted at Murowa Diamond Mine Production at the Murowa diamond mine, in Zimbabwe, has reportedly been suspended, as owners RioZim struggle to pay workers and creditors. The situation is "deeply worrying", according to Fred Moyo, the country's deputy minister of mines and mining development engineer, as quoted by The Herald, a |
| India Hikes Gold Tariff from 6% to 15% India has more than doubled tariffs on gold and silver - up from 6% to 15% - in a move aimed at easing pressure on its foreign exchange reserves. The increase took effect on 13 May, just three days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called on people to stop buying gold for a year, as part of a broader austerity |
| Governments of Botswana, Angola Join WFDB The governments of Botswana and Angola have become affiliated members of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) in a move that signals closer ties between producer countries and the trading community. The announcement was made yesterday (18 May) at the WFDB International Summit in |
| KP Must Meet Minimum Expectations, says Civil Society The Kimberley Process must "think beyond superficial marketing adjustments" and meet its minimum expectations, the civil society observer body said in a hard-hitting assessment ahead of last week's KP intersessional meeting in Mumbai. The Kimberley Process Civil Society Coalition lamented "yet another |
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