De Beers reports stable ninth sales cycle before retail selling season starts 

Diamond miner De Beers sold $440-million worth of rough diamonds during the ninth sales cycle of this year.

This is lower than the $475-million worth of diamonds sold in the eighth cycle of the year, as well as the $503-million worth of diamonds sold in the seventh cycle.

De Beers sold $466-million worth of rough diamonds in the ninth cycle of 2017.

The sales are based on global sightholder and auction sales.

CEO Bruce Cleaver on Tuesday commented that, as the industry’s focus turns towards the key end-of-year retail selling season, rough diamond sales continued to be in line with expectations during the ninth cycle of the year.

“While demand for smaller, lower-quality rough diamonds continues to see some challenges, the latest cycle saw some signs of improvement in this area as factories in India begin to reopen after Diwali.”