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by Will Purcell

The diamond and specialty minerals stocks box score on Friday was a mediocre 84-108-118 as the TSX Venture Exchange lost three points to 702. Western sanctions apply against Russia's main diamond miner, Alrosa, and the rest of the country's diamond sector. Are the measures finally having an impact on the supply side of the equation? Well, perhaps, as the latest data and recently revised information from Paul Zimnisky show rough prices, which peaked in mid-February, have been inching higher since late March.

Nevertheless, Mr. Zimnisky's global rough diamond price index remains 3.0 per cent below the February high, with the upward bounce over the past six weeks still less than 1 per cent. Rough prices are up roughly 80 per cent since the end of the COVID-19 crash in the early spring of 2020 and are slightly higher than their previous all-time high of 11 years ago, so perhaps the pause is warranted, Alrosa's predicament notwithstanding. On the other hand, spring is a difficult season to sell rough as the major holidays are several months ahead and jewellery manufacturers have already restocked after the end of the previous holiday season.

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