Editor’s Note
This month’s roundup highlights a diverse range of global developments, from shifting consumer priorities and generational change to industry challenges and scientific insights. Of particular note are significant findings in archaeology and health research that may prompt us to reconsider established historical timelines and dietary impacts.
- Consumers expect to establish sustainable living standards.
- The emergence of Generation Beta in 2025.
- Release of the 2024 Swiss watch industry annual report.
- De Beers faces a $2 billion diamond inventory challenge.
- New archaeological discoveries redefine the timeline of the Great Wall of China’s origins.
- New research shows a correlation between palm oil consumption and weight gain.
- Golden Globe Awards’ best screenplay faces “revocation” and boycott due to AI technology involvement.
- First female soccer player in history signs a $1 million contract.
Relevant surveys indicate that consumers believe sustainable lifestyles are quite important and trust that their personal actions will have an impact, with product sustainability becoming a key focus for them.
Surveys from consulting firms including Deloitte and Bain & Company in various countries reflect that due to the urgency of the climate crisis, people believe individuals should actively take action to address this issue and hope to adopt more sustainable lifestyles. Bain & Company points out that helping consumers live more sustainably does not mean launching more environmentally friendly but also more expensive new versions on existing product foundations, but rather meeting consumers’ multiple sustainable purchasing criteria. Among these, product sustainability and recyclability have not only become key concerns for current consumers; in terms of policy, new EU regulations similarly shift the focus to sustainable products. (For details, see Product Insight: 2024 “Life+” Annual Review and Outlook: Consumers Expect to Establish Sustainable Living Standards)
Following “Generation Alpha,” 2025 marks the emergence of Generation Beta. The social research company McCrindle believes that technological progress, global changes, and climate challenges will collectively shape the new generation’s different values and lifestyles from previous generations.
The Australian social research company McCrindle defines Generation Beta as those born between 2025 and 2039, projected to account for 16% of the global population by 2035. The company points out that unlike the emergence of any previous generation, Generation Beta will grow up against the backdrop of rapid technological development, with artificial intelligence, automation, and other unprecedented technological innovations profoundly impacting their lives, while also facing unprecedented social challenges. Based on this, Generation Beta’s growth may exhibit four prominent characteristics: seamless integration of technology and daily life, dual drivers of globalization and sustainability awareness, emphasis on individuality alongside “hyper-connectivity,” and resilience and adaptability under uncertainty. (For details, see Product Insight: Preview of the Arrival of the New Generation in 2025: Gen Beta)
The development speed of the Swiss watch industry slowed overall in 2024, but leading brands continued to perform strongly, with market polarization intensifying.
Last month, Morgan Stanley and the Swiss watch industry consulting firm LuxeConsult jointly released the eighth consecutive annual Swiss Watch Industry Annual Report. The latest report indicates that the Swiss watch industry experienced an overall growth slowdown in 2024, with leading brands continuing to lead, and the market performance still showing significant polarization. Data from the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry (FH) shows that Swiss watch export value decreased by approximately 3% in 2024, contrasting with the record growth of the previous two years, indicating the industry is facing challenges. Despite this, the performance of top-tier brands remains strong, especially the “Big 4” (i.e., the four major privately held brands) represented by Rolex, whose market share continues to expand.
More notably, despite slowing market demand, high-end watches priced over 50,000 Swiss francs accounted for 33.5% of the total market value and contributed a surprising 84% of the growth.
In terms of market share, Rolex continues to firmly lead the industry, holding a 32% market share and further expanding its market share. Other “Big 4” members—Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, and Richard Mille—also continue to perform strongly, with the combined market share of the four major brands reaching 47%, setting the highest growth record since 2019. However, more brands face market challenges, with a large portion of brands in the Swiss watch industry experiencing sales declines. Brands under groups like Swatch Group and Richemont have seen their market shares decrease, and some brands’ sales have even experienced significant declines.
Affected by declining demand in China and the rise of cultivated diamonds, the international diamond giant De Beers faces severe challenges, and the global diamond market is undergoing profound changes.
Anglo American recently announced a new impairment charge for its diamond giant De Beers, drawing attention to its operational difficulties once again. Due to weak global market demand, especially the rise of laboratory-grown diamonds and the sluggish Chinese market, De Beers is currently facing a diamond inventory challenge as high as $2 billion. Anglo American stated in its 2024 financial report that it conducted a $2.9 billion impairment charge on De Beers’ assets, marking another downward adjustment of the company’s valuation following a $1.6 billion impairment in 2023, reducing its market value from $8.5 billion in 2023 to approximately $4 billion currently, including $2 billion worth of unsold diamond inventory.
To cope with the difficulties, De Beers plans to cut rough diamond production by 10 million carats this year, following a 6 million carat reduction in 2024.
Simultaneously, the cultivated diamond market continues to heat up. Although cultivated diamond prices have fallen by over 80% in the past two years, due to their low prices and alignment with sustainable development trends, market acceptance is constantly improving. Facing market changes, De Beers attempted to enter the cultivated diamond field but ultimately chose to withdraw in 2024. Anglo American’s senior management believes that the natural diamond and cultivated diamond markets will further differentiate in the future to maintain their respective market positions.
De Beers’ predicament also reflects the downward trend of the entire natural diamond industry. Diamonds, once seen as a symbol of luxury, are facing challenges from changing consumer preferences.
