Editor’s Note
This article highlights a significant shift in strategy by De Beers, as it ends market support measures and cuts prices for the first time in over a year. The move underscores the profound challenges facing the global diamond industry, from shifting consumer demand to geopolitical trade pressures.
(Bloomberg) — Diamond marketer De Beers has ended its efforts to support the market and cut its official prices for stones for the first time in over a year, according to people familiar with the matter.
The diamond industry is going through one of the deepest and most prolonged crises in modern history, amid a pullback in luxury spending in China and the growing popularity of synthetic stones. US tariffs on India — the world’s largest diamond exporter — have added further pressure.
De Beers typically avoids price cuts because its huge market influence means such a decision can hit overall sector sentiment. Instead, the company had been selling stones at a discount in discreet operations, while official prices remained about 25% above market values in some categories.
On Monday, it sought to realign its position in the first regular sale of the year. The company applied sharp cuts to the price of rough diamonds over three-quarters of a carat, according to people familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified due to the private nature of the information.
In its regular sales, De Beers sets prices and tells customers — known in the industry as “sightholders” — how much they are expected to buy. While buyers can refuse, doing so can jeopardize their future access to supply. The company sells its diamonds in boxes, sorted by different categories and sizes.
The exact magnitude of Monday’s cuts was not immediately clear. The company introduced a single-line billing policy for the sale — instead of detailing the price of each individual box of diamonds, it bills a total amount — which makes it difficult to identify price adjustments. It also changed the composition of some boxes, complicating direct comparisons, the sources said.
De Beers had last cut prices in December 2024, and the new reduction comes at a pivotal moment for the company that created the modern diamond industry. The market had begun to show some signs of stabilization before US President Donald Trump’s trade war triggered fresh turbulence last year.
In August, Trump imposed 50% tariffs on India, where about 90% of diamonds are traded, cut, or polished. The US is by far the world’s largest consumer of diamonds.
For De Beers’ owner, Anglo American Plc, the timing could not be worse. The miner is seeking to exit the business as part of a deep restructuring, after fending off a $49 billion bid from BHP Group in 2024.