Large Stones Drive Mountain Province Tender

RAPAPORT... Mountain Province's average selling price rose at itsNovember tender amid strong demand for higher-value goods and a slightimprovement in the market for smaller rough. The miner garnered $72 per carat from the sale of 245,751carats of rough diamonds from its Gahcho Ku?(C) mine in Canada, bringing in atotal of $17.7 million, it said last week. That compares with $66 per carat inOctober, when demand for smaller and lower-quality diamonds was weak. "We continued to see good price bids [in November] forour better-quality, larger goods where the majority of our value lies," thecompany said. "We saw a slight increase in the pricing for lower qualities andsmaller sizes compared to our previous two sales." Attendance at the tender was above average for the year, as was the number ofbids it received, the miner noted. Mountain Province and De Beers, its partner in Gahcho Ku?(C),bid for the right to sell large stones and fancies from each run of production.In November, De Beers won the right to sell those diamonds. Image: Gahcho Ku?(C) mine. (Mountain Province)