Gem Diamonds Sales Slip in Weak Market

Revenue at Gem Diamonds slid in the third quarter as prices fell amid weak market conditions and a decline in the proportion of large stones sold.

Sales from the company’s Letšeng mine in Lesotho slumped 45% year on year to $31.4 million for the three months that ended September 30, it said Wednesday. Sales volume dropped 14% to 23,955 carats, while the average price decreased 35% to $1,310 per carat. Revenue also slipped 10% from the previous quarter, with the average price down 1%.

“As has been well documented, the global rough-diamond market has experienced a downturn in 2023,” the miner noted. “A decrease in the number of large, high-value diamonds recovered combined with this market pressure have negatively impacted the average dollar per carat and revenue achieved during the period.”

Gem Diamonds sold four diamonds for more than $1 million each, generating revenue of $6.1 million during the period. That compares with the sale of 10 diamonds in that range a year earlier, which garnered $25.1 million. The highest prices achieved in the three months from July to September were for a 5.96-carat, pink diamond, which realized $67,853 per carat, and for a 58.71-carat, white, type IIa rough, which sold for $36,399 per carat.

Production grew 8% to 26,913 carats for the period, with the company recovering one diamond greater than 100 carats. It plans to sell that stone in the fourth quarter, it said.

In the first nine months of 2023, revenue declined 34% to $103 million. The average price slid 26% to $1,353 per carat, and sales volume dropped 10% to 76,118 carats.