De Beers diamond sales shine on US, China demand

Anglo American said rough-diamond sales by its majority-owned De Beers Group rose 6.9% higher in the sixth sales cycle of 2021 compared with the previous cycle, driven by strong US and China demand.

De Beers sold $510m of diamonds in the sixth cycle compared with $477m in the fifth and $116m for the same period last year at the height of the Covid pandemic.

The miner said the second-half outlook remained positive, based on the strength of diamond jewellery sales, subject to continued coronavirus-related impacts.

Anglo American said the figures were provisional due to a change in its approach to diamond sales because of pandemic-related movement restrictions around the globe.