De Beers diamond sales fall in cautious market

Provisional rough diamond sales from Anglo-American's De Beers' unit fell to $445m in the third sales cycle compared with $542m a year ago amid a subdued market.

The figure was up from the prior cycle’s $431m.

"Many diamond businesses are continuing to take a cautious approach to purchases amidst the uncertain economic landscape and the slow pace of growth in China,” said De Beers chief executive Al Cook.

“However, we saw a further uptick in our rough diamond sales in our third sales cycle, ahead of what is usually a slower period for rough diamond demand in the second quarter of the year."

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com