(Bloomberg) --
De Beers implemented its biggest price increase for diamonds in years as the industry starts bouncing back from the pandemic-induced shutdown.
The world’s biggest diamond producer raised prices by about 5% at its first sale of the year, according to people familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified because the information is private. The increases mostly applied to stones bigger than 1 carat, the people said.
The diamond industry has surprised many by the speed of its recovery after being brought to a complete standstill in the first half of last year. Crucial holiday sales in the U.S. and China were strong, while a shortage of stock held by industry middlemen created strong demand.
De Beers doesn’t publicize price changes, but it’s probably one of the steepest increases since the early part of last decade, the people said. A spokesman for De Beers declined to comment.
There were signs of recovery in the fourth quarter of 2020 as rough-diamond buyers started replenishing stocks to prepare for the industry’s most important selling period: Thanksgiving to the Chinese New Year. De Beers’s business started rebounding, and the Anglo American Plc unit was able to edge prices higher in the last sale of the year in December.
That’s in stark contrast to the industry’s fortunes at the early stages of the pandemic, when sales collapsed, and diamond retailers and factories closed. De Beers responded by curtailing production, leading to a tighter supply just as shoppers returned to stores in parts of China and the U.S.
Últimas Noticias
Debanhi Escobar: they secured the motel where she was found lifeless in a cistern
Members of the Specialized Prosecutor's Office in Nuevo León secured the Nueva Castilla Motel as part of the investigations into the case
The oldest person in the world died at the age of 119
Kane Tanaka lived in Japan. She was born six months earlier than George Orwell, the same year that the Wright brothers first flew, and Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize
Macabre find in CDMX: they left a body bagged and tied in a taxi
The body was left in the back seats of the car. It was covered with black bags and tied with industrial tape
The eagles of America will face Manchester City in a duel of legends. Here are the details
The top Mexican football champion will play a match with Pep Guardiola's squad in the Lone Star Cup
Why is it good to bring dogs out to know the world when they are puppies
A so-called protection against the spread of diseases threatens the integral development of dogs
