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 ho-hum 77-71-162 as the TSX Venture Exchange added 10 points to 790. Rough diamond prices continued to gain precious altitude this week, adding hope that the turning tide has put an end to a three-year slump that saw prices fall 40 per cent from their record high in early 2022. Paul Zimnisky's global rough diamond price index reached 207.3 points at its peak but slumped to just 123.7 early this year. Several months of flatness followed, but since mid-June there has been a noticeable increase in prices.

Mr. Zimnisky's index has now topped the 130-point mark for the first time since last fall. It reached 130.6 this week, a one-point gain that added 0.8 per cent to the index on the week. Prices are now up nearly 2 per cent over the past month and 5.6 per cent over the past six months. Even so, prices remain 4.3 per cent lower than they were a year ago. Worse -- and this is why diamond miners will continue to struggle for months to come -- Mr. Zimnisky's index sits 17.5 per cent lower than it did a decade ago. You may recall that back then, it was almost as difficult to find a happy diamond miner as it was to find a new diamond mine.

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