Editor’s Note
This article highlights the continued market activity in lab-grown diamond stocks on December 3rd, with several companies seeing significant gains. It also notes recent price cuts by major producer De Beers.
On December 3rd, the lab-grown diamond concept remained active in the stock market. By the close, multiple stocks including Huifeng Diamond, Huanghe Whirlwind, and Yazhen Home Furnishings hit their daily limit-up, while Wold saw gains exceeding 15%, Sifangda rose over 12%, and Liliang Diamond increased by more than 7%.
On the news front, media reports indicated that De Beers, the world’s largest diamond producer, has cut prices for the majority of its goods by over 10%. This marks the first significant price reduction since the beginning of the year and is historically rare in magnitude.
Lab-grown diamonds are gem-quality synthetic diamond monocrystals produced by simulating the natural diamond growth environment, possessing value for jewelry applications.
In terms of parameters, synthetic diamonds share identical physical, chemical, and optical properties with natural diamonds. The key difference lies in the formation time: natural diamonds require billions of years under natural conditions, while synthetic diamonds can be produced in just a few weeks.
Currently, lab-grown diamonds produced in China have reached the grade of natural diamonds in terms of carat weight, color, clarity, and cut, even surpassing natural diamonds in clarity. However, in price, lab-grown diamonds are only about one-third the cost of their natural counterparts.
In recent years, China’s lab-grown diamond industry has gradually shifted from initial exploration to scaled development, showing strong momentum. The “Lab-Grown Diamond Industry Development White Paper (2024)” shows that in 2023, China’s output of lab-grown diamond rough exceeded 22 million carats, accounting for over 70% of the global total.
In contrast, India’s advantage lies in lab-grown diamond processing, holding 80% of the market share. The United States is the world’s largest consumer market for lab-grown diamonds, with a penetration rate of about 55%. According to the latest report from the US market research firm Tenoris, US finished jewelry retail sales grew by 9.9% in October 2024, with natural diamond jewelry seeing a modest increase of 4.7%, while lab-grown diamonds achieved a growth rate of 46%.
Based on his observations, in the upstream market, the decline in the ex-factory price of lab-grown diamond rough has narrowed, but cost-based pricing is the general trend. In the midstream market, the import and export penetration rate of lab-grown diamonds in India has decreased month-on-month. In the downstream market, the lab-grown diamond price index has declined, but retail (C-end) prices remain relatively stable. Meanwhile, in the US, the largest consumer market, the penetration rate of lab-grown diamonds is increasing year by year.
Data from Bain & Company shows that China’s lab-grown diamond penetration rate was around 6.7% in 2021 and is projected to reach 13.8% by 2025.
Public information shows that as of 2023, China’s output of superhard material diamond monocrystals accounted for about 80% of the global total. Henan Province’s output constituted 75% of the national total. For gem-quality large-grain lab-grown diamonds, China’s output accounts for over 50% of the global total, with Henan Province alone contributing nearly 80% of the national output.
According to Tonghuashun statistics, as of the close on December 3rd, there are 16 listed companies in the A-share lab-grown diamond concept sector. Geographically, they span 8 provinces and municipalities across China. Among them, Henan Province has 5 companies, accounting for over 30%.
Among these, Changge-based Huanghe Whirlwind is the earliest listed company in China’s diamond industry and is also the domestic supplier with the most complete product range and industrial chain in superhard materials. Zhecheng County in Shangqiu is the nation’s largest micro-powder production base, giving rise to the listed “twin stars” Liliang Diamond and Huifeng Diamond.
In terms of industry distribution (according to Shenwan primary industry classification), the companies are involved in 9 sectors: mechanical equipment, textiles & apparel, national defense & military industry, power equipment, utilities, basic chemicals, light industry manufacturing, commercial retail, and non-ferrous metals.
Regarding financial performance, 6 companies achieved year-on-year growth in both net profit attributable to parent and operating revenue for the first three quarters of this year: Yazhen Home Furnishings, Mankalon, Hengsheng Energy, Wold, Chaohongji, and China Gold.
In secondary market performance, the Henan contingent has been particularly impressive. Year-to-date, 6 companies have seen stock price increases exceeding 10%: Huifeng Diamond, Guojijinggong, Chujiang New Materials, Sifangda, Huanghe Whirlwind, and Zhongbing Hongjian.
Looking at the past month, 11 companies have seen stock price gains over 10%, with 4—Huifeng Diamond, Chujiang New Materials, Guojijinggong, and Mankalon—seeing increases exceeding 30%.
Huanghe Whirlwind hit the daily limit-up today, marking its 10th limit-up in the past year. The company’s main business is the production and sales of powders and superhard composite materials. Its main products cover superhard materials and products, superhard composite materials and products, etc. Currently, in the field of lab-grown diamonds, it boasts a 20-year technical accumulation advantage from R&D to mass production.
Huanghe Whirlwind possesses internationally advanced core technologies in ultra-high pressure synthesis equipment, raw/auxiliary material design, diamond synthesis, diamond tools, and applications. Nine of its self-developed technologies, including the “Key Technology for Synthesizing 1-5mm Gem-Quality Colorless Diamond,” have reached international advanced levels.
Sifangda has established a strategic product system centered on composite superhard materials, with precision diamond tools and CVD diamond as new growth drivers. Regarding the progress of its CVD diamond project, in 2023, the company increased R&D and management support for its subsidiary Tianxuan Semiconductor. Its self-developed MPCVD equipment and CVD diamond process have passed batch verification. The company’s annual 700,000-carat functional diamond industrialization project will entirely use its self-developed MPCVD equipment and CVD diamond process. Equipment installation began in April 2024, with gradual debugging and production starting in May 2024.
Sifangda stated that the CVD diamond segment overall has greater market potential. The company will continue to maintain high-intensity R&D investment, strengthen product market development, and set as its important operational goals the steady growth of its composite superhard materials and products business and the transition of its CVD diamond business from the capacity-building phase to the earnings-contribution phase.
