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Antwerp Diamond Centre is to release a stalled shipment of gems worth $200 million.

Some $200 million (£128.5 million) worth of diamonds has been released by a regulatory body in Belgium after a trading organisation lost its license.

According to Israeli Diamond Industry, the shipment of rough diamonds was seized because Brink, the organisation managing the transfer, had to commence bankruptcy proceedings for its Cash in Transit company earlier in November, with its license to trade revoked as a result.

The stones were held at Zaventem Airport under the authority of the Antwerp Diamond Centre (AWDC), an international regulatory body for the industry, after it raised financial concerns over the issue.

An open letter from the AWDC stated that the stalled shipment paralysed the distribution chain of rough gems, causing a great deal of damage to the sector, adding "Antwerp cannot be held hostage in this conflict any longer."

Last week, two rough diamonds mined in Lesotho, southern Africa were sold for $22.7 million, while a 4.68-carat rough blue diamond went for $4155,000 per carat – a record value for a gemstone from that site.

Russian diamond miner Alrosa has launched a bond for investors.

Alrosa, the Russian diamond miner that produces precious gems for use in diamond rings and diamond jewellery, has launched a bond.

This is according to Andrey Solovyov, head of debt capital markets at VTB Capital, on organiser of the issue, Reuters reports.

The $1 billion (£626 million) Eurobond runs for ten years and Mr Solovyov told the news source that demand has been high, with around 200 investors taking part.

He explained the book for the placement – which was also handled by JP Morgan and UBS – was "oversubscribed nearly two times".

Alrosa produces 96 per cent of overall diamond output in Russia and currently accounts for a quarter of diamond output worldwide.

In 2009, it produced 35 million carats of rough diamonds for use in items such as diamond engagement rings, valued at around $2.2 billion.

Rapaport recently reported Armenian firms are looking to enter into sales agreements with Alrosa and increase the amount of diamonds they import from Russia.
 

Sales at Gem Diamonds edged higher in the third quarter, thanks largely to operations at Letseng mine in Lesotho.

Gem Diamonds has posted a slight increase in sales for the third quarter of 2010, with precious stones valued at $51.9 million (£32.8 million) changing hands in the three months to September 30th.

The diamond production firm said performance at its Letseng mine in Lesotho helped boost results, with sales from the site climbing 18 per cent to $37.8 million.

A total of 21 rough diamonds sourced from Letseng sold for in excess of $20,000 per carat, including a 17.34-carat pink diamond that fetched $67,474 per carat.

The facility also yielded a 196-carat white diamond at the end of August, which was not included in a tender of precious stones that took place in October and will instead be sold as an exceptional diamond.

Commenting, Clifford Elphick, chief executive of the firm – which is based in London and has assets in eight countries – said prices of the precious stones "have continued to strengthen", thanks largely to demand from eastern nations.

The diamond market continues to show signs of recovery following the recession, according to Rockwell Diamonds.

The international diamond market is continuing its recovery to the highs reached in 2008 prior to the economic downturn.

This is according Canadian mining firm Rockwell Diamonds, which has posted its annual results for the three and six-month periods to August 31st 2010.

Prices of rough diamonds saw "further steady increases in some categories", the firm explained, but noted there needs to be "further improvement" in the prices of polished diamonds in order to meet the prices of their uncut counterparts.

Rockwell revealed it mined 14,168 carats of diamonds in the first half of fiscal 2011, with an average price of $1,243.53 (£782.09) per carat.

Among the items to be recovered from its Holpan, Klipdam and Saxendrift in the Northern Cape Province area of South Africa during the second quarter of the 12-month period was a 136-carat clean white stone found at Holpan, while Klipdam yielded a 69-carat pinkish stone with a brown overtone.

Namakwa Diamonds, which also has operations in South Africa, recently discovered a pair of rare diamonds – one of which is orange in colour – at a mine in the north-west of the country.