(IDEX Online) - Alrosa's rough and polished sales hit their lowest point of the year in July, down to $334m (provisional) as demand outstripped supply.Miners are struggling with inventories at record low levels, the company said today, reinforcing an earlier warning of a long period of "supply deficit". And prices are back to pre-Covid levels.Total sales in July were down more than 18 per cent on June. Last July, in the depths of the Covid crisis, Alrosa sold $35.8m. In July 2019 it sold $170.5m."At the moment, the pricing policy presents the only solution to balancing demand and supply," said Evgeny Agureev, Alrosa's deputy CEO."By early August, our rough diamond prices have rebounded to the pre-crisis levels. As a responsible market player, Alrosa will seek to support the demand and supply balance by servicing the real demand only."Pic courtesy Alrosa