The Positive in the Negative - September 2026

I’ve said it before, and I will say it again: When diamond mines close, they close because mining expenses are too high, and profitability is too low. The positive, in this negative scenario is, mines close because selling prices have bottomed out, hitting levels that are unsustainable.  They can’t go lower!

As mines close, supply is reduced. Reopening a diamond mine is very expensive, and the closing process is most often irreversible. Global diamond production has already been reduced by over 33%.

Tim Goodman, CEO at get-diamonds.com, states that “the challenge for miners is that 50% of value across a mine might be generated by smaller and lower quality commercial goods”. The decrease in demand for commercial goods, is why most mining operations have become unviable. “This means that only the very highest quality reserves in the world are economically viable under current conditions”. 

At the polished level, diamond inventories and prices have been reduced from the highs they reached in 2022.  Goodman believes, “There are early signs of recovering demand, and at some point, scarcity will bite ... (and) the market may adjust much faster than expected … the setup is there, and prices for some categories have already stabilised, indeed some of the best bargains may already have gone”. 

Jason McIntosh of Lantic Associates, believes that as supplies dwindle “the market may adjust much faster than expected, and the recovery is usually well underway before the headlines change”.

The continued demand for natural diamonds will always exist because high-end brands cannot retain their reputations by creating fine jewellery with components that are not rare and valuable. 

Peter Smith describes the reason underpinning the continuing strength of higher end, luxury brands saying: “The deliverable must absolutely be of exceptional quality, without any hint of compromise ... (production) must be consistent 100 percent of the time, not some, or even most, of the time … brands are not just selling a 58-facet, round brilliant diamond with an exceptional cut and a narrow range of color and clarity, or, for that matter, beautifully cut fancy shape diamonds, (brands) are selling peace of mind.” 

Luxury often speaks more about the purchaser than it does about the object being purchased.  Luxury speaks to the image the buyer is creating for themselves. This statement applies equally to suppliers, retailers as well as luxury purchasers. 

The Regal Imports ‘Hallmark of Quality’ boutique diamonds consistently deliver ‘peace of mind’ to our retail clients, and by extension to their end users. We have created a space for our natural diamonds in the luxury jewellery world experience.