RETAIL QUOTE:

"The China market is growing fast. Beside the global downturn, which affects every country, China is quite stable....Definitively, we are optimistic....We know Chinese consumers will continue to spend on luxury items. After all, it is a very big pond and in it there is space for many."

Michele Norsa

Chief Executive of Salvatore Ferragamo Italia

World News:

7.03ct Blue Diamond Sells for More Than $1M per Carat

Sotheby’s sale of a 7.03-carat, fancy vivid blue, flawless cushion-shaped diamond fetched almost $9.5 million, or $1,349,752 per carat in Geneva. The winning bidder wished to remain anonymous. Sotheby's noted that this blue diamond beat out the previous most expensive fancy vivid blue diamond sold at auction, and that the sale was a world record for the sale of any diamond at auction in terms of value per carat. Sotheby's total sale of magnificent jewels in Geneva was $35,762,327 and was 76.9 percent sold by lot.

U.S. Dpt. Store Sales Plunge 6%

U.S. department store sales fell 6.1 percent in April 2009 compared with one year ago, to $15.9 billion. The National Retail Federation (NRF) issued a statement saying that U.S. consumers need more proof that the economy is turning around before they will really start discretionary spending again.

U.S. Weekly Chain Store Sales Rise Slightly

Chain store sales in the U.S. rose 0.5 percent for the week that ended May 9, 2009, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) and Goldman Sachs, the first time since early December 2008 that the figure was positive. ICSC Research anticipates that May sales will be flat to down 1 percent, due in part to tax rebates that were disbursed and spent in May 2008.

DTC May Sight Estimated at $250M

The Diamond Trading Company's (DTC) May sight held an estimated value of $250 million. The sight was 25 percent higher than the March/April sight estimate, but still 62 percent lower than one year ago. DTC 2009 sales are expected to fall by about 50 percent, as reflected in the 2009 ITOs. Sales have fallen 73 percent in the first four sights of the calendar year to $660 million. With demand more apparent for certain items, DTC is exploring avenues for allowing sightholders to capitalize on changing trends, such as making goods that are not in the ITOs available to sightholders.

China's Jewelry Exports +4% in '08

China's jewelry exports saw a growth of 4 percent in 2008, in contrast with 17 percent growth in 2007, due to the faltering demand overseas. But sales of jewelry in China are expected top $26.2 billion by 2010, according to the Gems & Jewelry Trade Association of China, as China has become the biggest emerald, jade, pearl and platinum jewelry consumer in the world. China consumed 760,000 ounces of platinum in 2008 — 68 percent of the world's total demand — and 400 tons of gold.

U.S. Myanmar Ruby Ban Hurts Thailand's Gem Sector

The U.S. Tom Lantos Block Burmese JADE Act, which bans exports that bear Burmese gemstones, is having a negative impact on the Thai jewelry sector. The U.S. is currently one of the largest importers of Thai gems and jewelry, accounting for between 13 and 25 percent of exports during the past three years. The U.S. law hasled to a 40 percent year-on-year plunge in Thai exports in the first quarter of 2009. Up to 100,000 people have lost their jobs in the sector. The Thai foreign ministry and the Thai Gem & Jewellery Traders Association (TGJTA) are attempting to negotiate a review of the law.

Zimbabwe Working on New Strategy for Diamonds

The government of Zimbabwe is developing a model for exploiting the controversial Marange diamonds profitably and to prevent them from being banned from the world market. The government plans to identify investors to partner with the poorly equipped Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC) in Marange. The government seems unaware of the obstacle posed by African Consolidated Resources PLC, a British company that says it has valid legal title to mining claims on nearly all of the land of the Marange diamond fields.

Rapaport Weekly Broadcast

See the big, bold, beautiful 7.03-carat blue diamond that sold this week at Sotheby's Geneva for almost $9.5 million. The Diamond Trading Company's May sight has now passed us, but the estimated value of goods did not indicate that much in the way of robust sightholder trading is taking place before the JCK Vegas Show.