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Time of India
13-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
De Beers secretly sells discounted diamonds to selected traders
De Beers has been quietly selling rough diamonds at sharply marked-down prices to a small handful of customers, in a highly unusual move that's fueling tensions across an industry already mired in crisis. The secret deals appear aimed at reducing De Beers's ballooning inventories without openly cutting prices — something the company typically tries to avoid, but which has led to a big gap between its official pricing and valuations in the wider diamond market. De Beers usually holds 10 sales in Botswana each year for its roughly 70 registered buyers, where prices are non-negotiable. In recent months, De Beers has sold hundreds of millions of dollars of rough diamonds through side deals with a small number of its customers, according to buyers who asked not to be identified discussing private information. The company has been selling the stones at a 10% to 20% discount to its set prices, the people said. 5 5 Next Stay Playback speed 1x Normal Back 0.25x 0.5x 1x Normal 1.5x 2x 5 5 / Skip Ads by by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Play War Thunder now for free War Thunder Play Now Undo Rumors about the sales are adding to tensions among De Beers's buyers who weren't selected for the special deals, and are still expected to pay the company's official rate at its set-piece sales. The deals show the dilemma De Beers faces as it comes under pressure from owner Anglo American Plc to boost sales, while it's also seeking to support the global market by avoiding across-the-board price cuts. The almost unprecedented move by De Beers comes at a pivotal time for the company that invented the modern diamond industry. The diamond market has finally started showing signs of stabilizing after a prolonged demand crisis that sent global prices plunging, although President Donald Trump 's trade war has created fresh turmoil, with the diamond industry scrambling to avoid proposed levies. Live Events De Beers itself is under pressure from Anglo to reduce costs and stem losses. The larger miner is seeking to sell the diamond business as part of its own turnaround strategy announced last year. While a sale may take some time, De Beers's management is under strict instructions to stop building stockpiles of unsold stones. De Beers has also been drastically cutting costs, including shuttering its lab-grown Lightbox unit last week. A spokesperson for De Beers declined to comment. De Beers wields considerable power in the rough-diamond market because of its role as the biggest supplier of new diamonds. At its normal sales, De Beers sets the prices and tells its customers – known in the industry as 'sightholders' — how much they are expected to purchase. While buyers can refuse, doing so can jeopardize their access to supplies in the future. De Beers typically tries to avoid price cuts because its outsize influence means such a move can have a devastating impact on sentiment. Recent signs that the market is starting to recover mean that now would be a particularly bad time to officially lower prices. But the situation has grown increasingly fraught over the past year, as De Beers's reluctance to make significant cuts has left its official rates far higher than plunging valuations in the wider market. Bloomberg reported previously that many of its customers had stopped buying, and some had stopped showing up at the sales at all. Adding to the tensions, De Beers told its clients late last year that it's likely to reduce their number in 2026. Now, buyers who haven't been tapped for discounted deals are complaining there's a lack of transparency about which customers have been selected and why. Some customers also risk being undercut by rivals when it comes to selling polished stones to retailers. The unusual move by De Beers comes as the battered diamond market grapples with the implications of Trump's import tariffs. The US is the world's biggest diamond market but doesn't mine any gems itself. Roughly 90% of diamonds are manufactured in India's giant cutting and polishing centers. All diamond imports to the US are currently subject to a 10% tariff, and face further levies when the 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs comes to an end. Traders have already poured large volumes of stones into the US market to get ahead of tariffs, but fear a slump in demand if US consumers are forced to pay more because of the levies. Purchases have slowed as companies responsible for cutting and polishing worry about being stuck with inventory that is no longer profitable to sell to the US. The industry is lobbying for an exemption from tariffs.
Business of Fashion
08-05-2025
- Business
- Business of Fashion
De Beers is Closing Its Man-Made Diamond Jewellery Business
De Beers is closing down its lab-grown diamond business, cementing an earlier decision to stop selling the stones as jewellery as it commits to traditional gems. The diamond miner announced last year that it would cease selling its own man-made gems, but was unsure what it would do with the Lightbox business that made them. On Thursday, it said it's discussing the sale of some assets — including inventory — with potential buyers. While having the technology to make synthetic gems, the company had long refused to sell them as jewelry, fearing they would undercut the allure of natural stones. Yet as man-made gems gained traction and started competing directly with natural diamonds, De Beers started its own jewellery brand in 2018. Lightbox was introduced to sell synthetic diamonds at a steep discount to rival producers in an attempt to drag prices lower and create a clear divide in consumers' minds between traditional and lab-grown products. Synthetic diamond prices have now collapsed, though how much of that is down to De Beers rather than a flood of new supply from places like China is open to debate. The problem for De Beers is that wholesale prices of lab-grown diamonds have now become much cheaper than those of Lightbox, undermining the reason for continuing with the brand. 'The persistently declining value of lab-grown diamonds in jewellery underscores the growing differentiation between these factory-made products and natural diamonds,' De Beers chief executive officer Al Cook said in a statement. 'The planned closure of Lightbox reflects our commitment to natural diamonds.' De Beers is in the process of trying to cut costs as it navigates a crisis within the diamond industry and prepares to be cast adrift by Anglo American Plc, which is trying to sell the famous gem company. By Thomas Biesheuvel Learn more: De Beers Takes Another Hit as Diamond Woes Bite Owner Anglo American posted a $3 billion writedown on the unit, which is struggling to navigate a collapse in Chinese demand and increasing competition from lab-grown stones.
Bloomberg
10-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Anglo Remains in Talks to Sell Coal Assets to Peabody After Fire
Anglo American Plc said it's still in talks with Peabody Energy Corp. to sell its coal portfolio for $3.78 billion, adding that a fire at its Australian operations hadn't caused damage. 'Anglo American continues to work with Peabody towards satisfying the remaining customary conditions in those agreements that are required for completion of the transaction,' the London-based miner said in statement Thursday. Conditions in the mine 'remain stable, with data and camera footage showing no evidence of damage,' it added.
Bloomberg
08-04-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Peabody Reviews $3.8 Billion Coal Deal After Anglo Mine Ignition
Peabody Energy Corp. is reviewing a deal worth up to $3.78 billion to buy Anglo American Plc's steel-making coal business after an ignition event at an Australian mine. The US producer will consider 'all options related to its acquisition' and remains in talks with London-based Anglo about an incident that caused an evacuation of workers at the Moranbah North Mine in Queensland, Peabody said in a statement Tuesday after regular market hours.
Bloomberg
17-02-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Anglo Platinum Declares Additional Dividend of $856 Million
Anglo American Platinum Ltd. declared an additional cash payout of 15.7 billion rand ($856 million) ahead of an exit by parent Anglo American Plc. The extra payout brings the total dividend for 2024 to 71.75 rand a share, Johannesburg-listed Amplats said in a statement on Monday.
