De Beers Sales Volume Down in 2019

By Rapaport News / January 26, 2020 / www.diamonds.net / Article Link

RAPAPORT... De Beers' sales fell 8% by volume last year amid a slowdown in the rough-diamond market and weak demand from the manufacturing sector.The miner sold 30.9 million carats of rough, compared with 33.7 million carats in 2018, as clients bought fewer stones due to an oversupply in the midstream and global economic uncertainty, it reported last week.De Beers' average sales price dropped 20% to $137 per carat for the year, reflecting a higher proportion of lower-value goods. As a result, rough-sales value declined 25% to $4.04 billion for 2019, according to Rapaport calculations based on De Beers' sight reports. The company's average price index, which tracks its rough prices on a like-for-like basis, declined 6%. The miner reduced production 13% to 30.8 million carats in response to market conditions, it explained.In the fourth quarter, sales dropped 29% to 7 million carats from two sights. That compared with 9.9 million carats in 2018, when the company held three sights. Production for the three months fell 15% to 7.8 million carats.De Beers plans to produce between 32 million and 34 million carats in 2020, representing an increase versus 2019 as the miner anticipates an improvement in trading conditions. It also expects higher output from its Venetia mine in South Africa, which the company is in the process of transitioning to underground.Image: Rough diamonds being sorted with tweezers. (Ben Perry/Armoury Films/De Beers)

Recent News

Mixed outlook for gold as it remains range bound for past three months

June 30, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Gold stocks down on flat metal price

June 30, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Gold stocks down on metal decline

June 23, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Huge quantifiable rise in geopolitical, economic and trade risks

June 23, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com

Platinum clearly ahead of palladium for first time in seven years

June 16, 2025 / www.canadianminingreport.com
See all >
Share to Youtube Share to Facebook Facebook Share to Linkedin Share to Twitter Twitter Share to Tiktok