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Lab groans: Synthetics’ price collapse offers hope for naturals

Real deal: Natural diamonds appear to be slowly recovering from their slump last year PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO
Real deal: Natural diamonds appear to be slowly recovering from their slump last year PIC MORERI SEJAKGOMO

In January lab-grown diamond producers saw their revenues dip for the first time since their creations exploded onto the scene a few years ago. Sales are still strong, but cynics say collapsing prices confirm that the lab-growns are ‘shiny trinkets’ far removed from the real deal. Staff Writer, MBONGENI MGUNI, reports

Too much of a good thing? Or from the perspective of some natural diamond producers, good riddance to bad rubbish?

The latest data coming out of the retail jewellery sector indicates that lab-grown diamonds are facing their moment of truth, a crash in prices so deep that their even soaring sales are unable to prevent a squeeze on revenue.

Editor's Comment
Our digital safety is in our hands

That sounds like good news. But the report also warns that this may simply be because our digital economy is still young, not because we are safe. As more people shop, bank and pay online, criminals will follow.We Batswana do not need a report to tell us that danger is real. Many of us have heard of or fallen victim to KYC scams. A caller impersonates your bank or mobile money provider. They say they need to “verify” your account. They ask...

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