It’s not just stock markets that are on fire. Globally, polished top-quality diamonds are quickly turning pricey, after slithering lower for most of 2012 and the entire 2013. In the first quarter of 2014, prices of top quality one-carat polished diamonds gained 2.3 per cent, according to Rapaport index data.
The three preceding quarters saw prices of polished stones drop 1 to 4 per cent. Stable Far East demand, jewellers restocking after emptying out inventories after the Christmas and Chinese New Year frenzy, and rising rough diamond prices, all contrived to inject life into the demand for top-quality diamonds. Of course, now that restocking is done, prices may cool off a bit.
Stones of smaller carats, though, stuck to their climb up the price charts, which they embarked on late last year. The Rapaport index for 0.5 and 0.3 carats polished diamonds marched to a 7 and 9 per cent gain for the first quarter of the 2014 calendar. Demand for 0.3 carats, in fact, appears to be the strongest. Its representative index is up a good 13 per cent in the past year.