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alexgordonjewelers.com The diamond industry
| Diamond | Clarity Color Cut | Distribution of Diamonds | characteristics of diamonds | History of Diamond | Shape Quality and cutting process | The diamond industry | sitemap |
The diamond industry
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The diamond industry can be broadly separated into two basically
distinct categories: one dealing with gem-grade diamonds and another
for industrial-grade diamonds. While a large trade in both types of
diamonds exists, the two markets act in dramatically different ways. A large trade in gem-grade diamonds exists. Unlike precious metals such as gold or platinum, gem diamonds do not trade as a commodity: there is a substantial mark-up in the sale of diamonds, and there is not a very active market for resale of diamonds. One hallmark of the trade in gem-quality diamonds is its remarkable concentration: wholesale trade and diamond cutting is limited to a few locations (most importantly New York, Antwerp, London, Tel Aviv, Amsterdam and Surat), and a single company—De Beers—controls a significant proportion of the trade in diamonds. They are based in Johannesburg, South Africa and London, England. |
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| The production and distribution of diamonds
is largely consolidated in the hands of a few key players,
and concentrated in traditional diamond trading centers (the
most important being Antwerp). The De Beers company holds a
clearly dominant position in the industry, and has done so
since soon after its founding in 1888. De Beers owns or
controls a significant portion of the world's rough diamond
production facilities (mines) and distribution channels for
gem-quality diamonds. The company and its subsidiaries own
mines that produce some 40 percent of annual world diamond
production. At one time it was thought over 80 percent of
the world's rough diamonds passed through the Diamond
Trading Company (DTC, a subsidiary of De Beers) in London,
but presently the figure is estimated at less than 50
percent. De Beers used its monopoly position to establish
strict price controls, and market diamonds directly to
consumers in world markets. The De Beers diamond advertising campaign is acknowledged as one of the most successful and innovative ones in history. N.W. Ayer & Son, the advertising firm retained by De Beers in the mid-20th century, succeeded in reviving the American diamond market and opened up new markets, even in countries where no diamond tradition had existed before. N.W. Ayer's multifaceted marketing campaign included product placement, advertising the diamond itself rather than the De Beers brand, and building associations with celebrities and royalty. This coordinated campaign has lasted decades and continues today; it is perhaps best captured by the now-familiar slogan "a diamond is forever". The market for industrial-grade diamonds operates much differently from its gem-grade counterpart. Industrial diamonds are valued mostly for their hardness and heat conductivity, making many of the gemological characteristics of diamond, including clarity and color, mostly irrelevant. This helps explain why 80% of mined diamonds (equal to about 100 million carats or 20,000 kg annually), unsuitable for use as gemstones and known as bort, are destined for industrial use. In addition to mined diamonds, synthetic diamonds found industrial applications almost immediately after their invention in the 1950s; another 400 million carats (80,000 kg) of synthetic diamonds are produced annually for industrial use—nearly four times the mass of natural diamonds mined over the same period. The dominant industrial use of diamond is in cutting, drilling, grinding, and polishing. Most uses of diamonds in these technologies do not require large diamonds; in fact, most diamonds that are gem-quality except for their small size, can find an industrial use. Diamonds are embedded in drill tips or saw blades, or ground into a powder for use in grinding and polishing applications. Specialized applications include use in laboratories as containment for high pressure experiments (see diamond anvil), high-performance bearings, and limited use in specialized windows. With the continuing advances being made in the production of synthetic diamond, future applications are beginning to become feasible. Garnering much excitement is the possible use of diamond as a semiconductor suitable to build microchips from, or the use of diamond as a heat sink in electronics. Significant research efforts in Japan, Europe, and the United States are under way to capitalize on the potential offered by diamond's unique material properties, combined with increased quality and quantity of supply starting to become available from synthetic diamond manufacturers. The diamond supply chain is controlled by a limited number of powerful businesses, and is also highly concentrated in a small number of locations around the world. In fact, the amount of power which De Beers has consolidated historically prevented it from direct trade with the United States, as its trade practices led to an indictment for violating antitrust regulations (the case was settled in 2004). The concentration of power only loosens at the retail level, where diamonds are sold by a limited number of distributors, known as sightholders, to jewelers around the world SourcesHistorically diamonds were known to be found only in
alluvial deposits in southern India; India led the world in
diamond production from the time of their discovery in
approximately the 9th century BCE to the mid-18th century
CE, but the commercial potential of these sources has been
exhausted. The first non-Indian diamond source was found in
Brazil in 1725. Today, most commercially viable diamond
deposits are in Africa, notably in South Africa, Namibia,
Botswana, the Republic of the Congo, Angola and Sierra
Leone. There are also commercial deposits being actively
mined in the Northwest Territories of Canada, Siberia
(mostly in Yakutia territory, for example Mir pipe and
Udachnaya pipe), Brazil, and in Northern and Western
Australia. Diamond prospectors continue to search the globe
for diamond-bearing kimberlite and lamproite pipes. |
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