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Final Note

Diamond industry facing rough sales

Molly Wood Jan 1, 2016
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Final Note

Diamond industry facing rough sales

Molly Wood Jan 1, 2016
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If it seems like you saw a lot of ads for diamond jewelry over the holidays, it wasn’t your imagination.

The diamond industry is in a little trouble, and that might mean that 2016 will be a good time to go bargain hunting for shiny toys.

De Beers is the world’s largest diamond mover; it was behind a huge holiday marketing campaign here in the U.S. and China, trying to boost diamond demand.

Rough diamond prices fell 18 percent in 2015, and the finished product — polished stones — declined 8 percent last year.

Analysts say more price cuts are coming, so it’s good news if you want to buy a diamond, bad news if you want to sell one.

The Rapaport Diamond Index says the price of top-quality diamonds have dropped more like 80 percent in the last 30 years.

At least they’re still really pretty to look at.

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