GJ Town India

Recent Import Duty Hike to Strengthen Jewellery Manufacturing in India A step towards establishing Brand India jewellery! The government recently increased the customs duty on categories of diamond such as semi-processed, half cut or broken, and cut and polished coloured gemstone to 7.5 per cent, from 5 per cent earlier, and increase in import of jewellery articles from 15% to 20% in a move to narrow the current account deficit (CAD). Mr Pramod Kumar Agrawal, Chairman, The Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) said, “GJEPC welcomes the step undertaken by the government to narrow the current account deficit. Welcoming the Increase in import duty on jewellery from 15% to 20% by Chairman GJEPC said “this move would not only help the sector strengthen jewellery manufacturing in India but also give a boost to Jewellery exports from India, a step towards establishing Brand India jewellery”. Mr. Agrawal said, “The import duty increase in cut and

CIBJO Gemmological Commission Special Report surveys Gem labs about synthetic and treated diamond reports With fewer than four weeks to go to the opening of the 2018 CIBJO Congress in Bogotá, Colombia, on October 15, 2018, the sixth of the CIBJO commissions' Special Reports has been released. Prepared by the CIBJO Gemmological Commission, headed by Hanco Zwaan, it reveals the results of a survey of 23 gemmological laboratories from around the world, about whether and how they report on synthetic and treated diamonds. "The survey provided a clear picture of the similarities and differences on the reports issued by the various laboratories, and perhaps also suggested the requirements and preferences of different markets around the globe," wrote Mr. Zwaan. "Overall the nomenclature used by laboratories is clear about the nature of the stones described, but there are inconsistencies with regard to the precise terms used, and whether or not grading of

Alrosa, the world's largest diamond mining company, has sold special size rough diamonds (over 10.8 carats) at the auction in Vladivostok. In total, the company sold 108 gem-quality lots with total weight of 2,003 carats. Overall revenue from sales amounted to $12.6 million. 76 companies from Russia, mainland China, Hong Kong, the US, Israel, Belgium, India and UAE took part in the auction. “The Far East is still of strategic interest for us in terms of expanding cooperation with China, and we traditionally invite companies from this country to participate in our auctions. The auctions in Vladivostok are particularly successful this year. We sold more than 100 diamonds of excellent quality at the latest auction, and got a good premium to the starting price. We plan to hold the next auction in Vladivostok in late October - early November,” Evgeny Agureev, the Member of the Executive committee, Director of the United Selling Organization of Alrosa, commented on the res

New five-year licence expires in 2023 Lucapa Diamond Company Limited announces that a new Mineral Investment Contract has been gazetted by the Angolan Ministry of Mineral Resources and Petroleum for the Lulo kimberlite exploration licence. The MIC covers a five-year period through to 30 April 2023. Lucapa is a co-owner and operator of the kimberlite exploration program on the highly prospective 3,000km2 Lulo concession, which is run in parallel with the high-value alluvial diamond mining activities, conducted via Sociedade Mineira Do Lulo. Lucapa and its partners have established a systematic year-round kimberlite drilling program which aims to identify the primary hard-rock source, or sources, of the exceptional large and high-value alluvial diamonds currently being recovered proximal to the kimberlite targets at Lulo. Lucapa Managing Director Stephen Wetherall said the gazetting of the new five-year MIC for the Lulo kimberlite licence was further evidence of Angol

Services Agreement for Mining and Marketing Tango Mining Limited announces that it has signed a Services Agreement for Mining and Marketing of Diamonds with Cooperativa Mineira Do Moquita, SCRL on a 147 square kilometer portion of a concession located 50 km north of Lucapa within the Lauchimo River basin, Province of Lunda Norte, Republic of Angola. Tango is responsible for capital expenditures associated with alluvial diamond mine design and equipment acquisition as well as enhancing production. As remuneration, Tango will receive 60% of the proceeds from the sale of produced diamonds. The Moquita Property, is located approximately 50 km downstream from the high diamond value Camútuè kimberlites. These, and possibly other kimberlites, have fed extensive downstream alluvial diamond deposits along ancient, north trending river systems including the Lauchimo River, which flows south to north across the Property. Such alluvial diamond deposits have been exploited by arti

Hundreds of Visitors Already  Registered for BDW from October 8-10 Bharat Diamond Bourse providing Flight tickets for selected buyers The Bharat Diamond Bourse (BDB) in Mumbai says more than 300 visitors from India and overseas has already registered for the second edition of the Bharat Diamond Week at the bourse, to take place from October 8-10. Hundreds more buyers are expected to register in the countdown to the expanded polished diamond fair. The inaugural show, held from April 23-25, was attended by more than 1,000 visitors from India and across the world who did business with 100 Indian exhibitors of polished goods. In addition, the BDB is providing flight tickets to selected buyers to create more sales opportunities for the 100 Indian polished diamonds companies who will be exhibiting at the show. The buyers who have been selected are from Turkey, Thailand and India. The bourse will also be providing 150 rooms for international buyers at a hotel close to

Allows even greater volumes of jewellery to be screened simultaneously The International Institute of Diamond Grading & Research (IIDGR), a member of De Beers Group, announced the introduction of SYNTHdetect XL, an advanced version of the highly successful SYNTHdetect synthetic screening device launched last year. Unveiled at the Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair, SYNTHdetect XL has a larger base unit that allows multiple volumes of jewellery to be screened simultaneously, providing even greater efficiencies for users. It also provides the opportunity to now scan larger necklaces, multiple solitaire rings and multiple bracelets, while retaining the ease of use of the original device. Jonathan Kendall, President, IIDGR, said: “We’re delighted to be introducing the next innovation in IIDGR’s range of industry-leading synthetic screening devices, SYNTHdetect XL. Using the same revolutionary technology as the original SYNTHdetect, this new device allows more pieces

Diamond Jewelry Sales record $82 billion in 2017 The World Federation of Diamond Bourses (WFDB) has welcomed the De Beers Group's Diamond Insight Report which shows diamond jewelry sales in 2017 at a record $82 billion. In addition, the report finds that the Millennial and Gen Z generations combined accounted for two-thirds of global diamond jewelry sales last year. "There is no doubt that this is a very positive and upbeat report," said WFDB President Ernie Blom. "The diamond industry can take great heart from this report which I would highly recommend that people take the time to read. We can all learn a great deal about how to approach and market to the younger generations because the report contains very detailed information about the buying patterns of the 21 to 39 Millennials age group, and Gen Z of those currently 18-20-years-old. "They are incredibly important demographics with huge spending power, but they want to buy on their terms.

India Russia, immense growth potential in the business Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu, recently visited the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok in Russia. The visit began with a tour of the diamond cutting and polishing factory set up by the KGK Group of India in Vladivostok. It has a manufacturing capacity of 150,000 carats of diamond per year and employees 400 people. The facility was inaugurated by Russian President, Vladimir Putin, last year. The Commerce Minister had discussions with KGK Group, MD, Vithal Ramani, to explore the potential and sourcing and value addition opportunities in the diamond trade for India. The Minister also held bilateral meeting with Yury Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia. Discussions took place on areas of cooperation between India and Russia to strengthen bilateral ties for economic growth. The Minister also interacted with the Governors, Vice-Governors’ and Representativ

The Diamond Producers Association (DPA) has announced that RZ Murowa Holdings Ltd, majority owner and operator of Murowa Diamonds Private Ltd (Murowa Diamonds), has joined the DPA, effective 1 July.  Murowa Diamonds operates the Murowa mine in Zimbabwe, which was purchased from Rio Tinto in 2015 and expanded significantly under its new leadership. Manit M. Shah, Chief Operating Officer of Murowa Diamonds, will join the Board of Directors of the DPA in September 2018. Mr. Shah has considerable experience driving business performance and managing international operations. Jean-Marc Lieberherr, CEO of the DPA, said “We are delighted to welcome RZ Murowa to the DPA and Manit to our Board of Directors.  The DPA will continue to play a vitally important role in the future of the diamond industry and broadening our representation and geographic reach will help ensure we maximise the positive impact we can have for the sector as a whole. We look forward to working closely with Ma

Strengthens global resource portfolio and supports production potential De Beers Group announces the completion of the previously announced Plan of Arrangement pursuant to which De Beers Canada has acquired all of the outstanding securities of Peregrine Diamonds Ltd at a purchase price of C$0.24 per share, for a total cash consideration of C$107 million. The acquisition includes the high quality Chidliak diamond resource located in Canada’s Nunavut Territory and other properties elsewhere in Nunavut and the Northwest Territories. The transaction, which was announced on 19 July 2018, was approved by Peregrine’s security holders on 31 August 2018 and by the Supreme Court of British Columbia in its final order dated 10 September 2018. The common shares of Peregrine have been approved for delisting from the Toronto Stock Exchange and will be delisted at the end of trading on 14 September 2018. Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group, said: “We are very pleased to complete th

Alrosa has launched the first True Colours auction of large coloured diamonds Alrosa, the largest diamond mining company in the world, presented the first of its kind collection of large coloured diamonds at the Hong Kong Jewelry & Gem Fair. This is a stepping stone of a new strategy, executed by Alrosa to become the world leader in the production of coloured polished diamonds. "Alrosa polished branch now focuses on the processing of large and coloured diamonds and the subsequent sales. We are the world's largest producer of diamonds, and that gives reason to believe that we are also ahead in terms of coloured rough diamond production. Today, Alrosa produces at least 7 thousand carats of coloured diamonds per year. We have all it takes to dominate the market of coloured diamonds. The collection presented in Hong Kong demonstrates our capabilities," said Evgeny Agureev, Director of the United Selling Organization of Alrosa. The collection show

CIBJO releases Ethics Commission Special Report, Focuses on impact and implications of revised FTC Guides With fewer than five weeks to go to the opening of the 2018 CIBJO Congress in Bogotá, Colombia, on October 15, 2018, the fifth of the CIBJO commissions' Special Reports has been released. Prepared by the CIBJO Ethics Commission, headed by Tiffany C. Stevens, the report focuses exclusively on the newly revised Guides for the Jewelry, Precious Metals, and Pewter Industries, released in July by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The report is co-authored by Ms. Stevens and Sara E. Yood. Addressing comments that had been heard in the jewellery industry that the FTC Guides seem to disregard harmonisation efforts made by the international trade, Ms. Stevens and Ms. Yood note that the primary focus of the American agency is somewhat different. "The FTC tries to harmonise its guidance with international standards when possible, but it must base its guidance on

Now SWIFT, the new risks for banks! According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as background documentation for the periodic consultation with Belgium, Financial System Stability Assessment paper on Belgium was prepared by IMF to focus on Belgium Financial system stability assessment. Stress tests on banks and insurance companies confirm that they can absorb credit, sovereign, and market losses in the event of a severe deterioration in macro financial conditions. The risk of interbank contagion through direct exposures is low. Insurance companies are also generally resilient and the losses incurred by those that belong to banking groups do not threaten the soundness of those groups. The oversight arrangement for the Belgium-based Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) has proven effective, but is being challenged by new risks. Key among these are cyber security incidents in SWIFT’s global user network.  To strengthen the NBB&

Production delayed of Rare Earth 2018 coin There is a delay on the production of this product; any order containing Rare Earth will have a delay of up to six weeks before being despatched. Please take note there is a limit of one coin per order, says Perth Mint! With original artistry inspired by ancient forces that gave us brilliant treasures, the Rare Earth coin has been crafted from 5oz of pure silver and a natural golden diamond. Aged at 1.6 billion years, each handset jewel from the Argyle Diamond Mine in Western Australia’s spectacular Kimberley region represents the epicentre of a supernova, a stellar explosion like those that forged silver when our planet was formed. The coin’s high relief reverse symbolises the creation of precious metals during an intense cosmic explosion. These elements were present when gravity slowly compressed the resulting dust and debris into new stars and planets, including Earth. This coin has been individually ‘antiqued’ to give