This item is part of Stockwatch's value added news feed and is only available to Stockwatch subscribers.

Here is a sample of this item:

by Will Purcell

The diamond and specialty minerals stocks box score on Friday was a bleak 59-114-137 as the TSX Venture Exchange slid 13 points to 588. For the second week running there were no adjustments to the recent weeks of Paul Zimnisky's global rough diamond price index. Unfortunately, while all the data were punctual, the information came with a gloomy bent, and so Mr. Zimnisky's chart slipped 0.4 point this week to a new two-year low of 144.1 points -- a 0.3-per-cent drop this week.

Rough diamond prices are now 30.5 per cent below their all-time high set in early 2022, when Mr. Zimnisky pegged his index at a cheerful 207.3 points. The good news is that the rate of decline has flattened a bit. Since mid-July of 2023 the index has shed about 16 points, an annualized decline of 11.3 per cent. Over the previous 18 months, the index had lost 63 points, an annualized drop of 20 per cent.

Like most diamond analysts, Mr. Zimnisky is an optimist. His chart now displays two dashed black horizontal lines -- the latest one some seven points below the first -- lines that depict periods when rough diamond priced flattened, only to resume their decline anew. With the chart now nearly five points below the latest dashed line, it may be time to throw up a third line to act as a metaphorical barricade against falling prices.

The remainder is available to Stockwatch subscribers.
Sign-up for a FREE 30-day Stockwatch subscription and SEE NO ADS