China’s Middle Class Spurring Demand for Mass-market Diamonds

Bloomberg reported that enthusiastic diamond buying from China’s growing middle class has caused prices for “mass-market” diamonds to rise significantly faster than prices for more expensive, top-quality stones.

As quoted in the market news:

Prices for a 1-carat (PLP44DBD) internally flawless “top white” diamond have gained about 7 percent in two years, while a stone of similar size and color with slight imperfections jumped 24 percent, according to consultant PolishedPrices.com data.

The price jump in more flawed diamonds benefits producers such as Russia’s OAO Alrosa, the world’s biggest by volume with 30 percent of output in 2011, and De Beers, the largest by revenue. Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Ltd. (1929), a retailer with a $13.5 billion market value, said its average selling price dropped in the last six months as it sold more pieces.

Click here to read the full Bloomberg report.