Diamond sales balloon in Q3

Staff Writer | Friday November 9, 2018 09:08

 

The latest numbers represent a sharp turnaround from a slow year in which average prices per carat were soft, while production continued to tick higher. 

While Debswana’s mines are the dominant producers of rough diamonds, Lucara’s Karowe Diamond Mine is also included in the calculations to a lesser extent. 

According to the figures, exports of Botswana produced stones were measured at P8.8 billion in the first quarter, P7.5 billion in the second and P11.9 billion in the third quarter, which ended on September 30, 2018.

Within the third quarter, exports were valued at P3.2 billion in July, P3.4 in August and P5.3 billion in September. For the year up to September 30, exports of locally produced diamonds were valued at P28.2 billion, compared to P36 billion for the full year in 2017.