The group realised $334 million from the seventh sales cycles of 2020.

“We continue to see a steady improvement in demand for rough diamonds in the eighth sales cycle of the year, with cutters and polishers increasing their purchases as retail orders come through ahead of the key holiday season,” said De Beers chief executive Bruce Cleaver.

“It’s encouraging to see these demand trends, but these are still early days and there is a long way to go before we can be sure of a sustained recovery in trading conditions.”

De Beers continued to implement a more flexible approach to rough diamond sales during the eighth sales cycle of 2020, with the sight event extended beyond its normal week-long duration.

 As a result, the provisional rough diamond sales figure quoted for cycle eighth represents the expected sales value for the period 21 September to 9 October and remains subject to adjustment based on final completed sales, said Anglo.

 

Mathew Nyaungwa, Editor in Chief of the African Bureau, Rough&Polished