After slight increases in July and August, the IDEX polished diamond price index shows a decline in September. According to IDEX Online, the Index began the month at 120.74 and ended at 119.49.
The decline in polished diamond prices has been ongoing since the middle of last year, and “the index is at its lowest point for more than three years […]”. Since January 2014, the Index shows a 9.1% decline in prices. On a month-to-month basis, polished diamond prices in September saw an increase of 0.3% over August. On a year-on-year basis, the average price in September 2017 showed a 2.9% decrease.
Diamond Prices by Size
When looking at categories on a month-to-month basis, comparing September 2017 to August 2017, there were “four rising categories, one decliners and two at standstill”.
On a year-on-year basis, there were four decliners and two risers. The 2.0-carat and 4.0-carat categories rose, while all the other categories declined.
When examining polished diamond prices since mid-2015, “the general trend is that 4-carat stones have shown the most price volatility, although 3-carat diamonds have displayed the steepest year-over-year decline”. From December 2015 on, “there has been relative price stability in 1-carat, 1.5-carat and 2-carat stones”.
Outlook
Although the overall trend and month-to-month numbers may seem discouraging, the IDEX Online outlook is positive, showing that “the market has started to come back to life over the past month following the traditionally quiet summer vacation”. Additionally, the major diamond trading centers have displayed “relatively stable” activity.
The Hong Kong Jewellery and Gem Show (September 13 to 17) was “solid if unspectacular”, and showed “a fairly substantial demand for lower-quality diamonds”.
As for October, IDEX Online predicts “relatively quiet” trading due to the Sukkot holiday in Israel the first half of the month, and the Diwali festival in India the second part of the month.
