Gaborone: De Beers sold rough diamonds with a provisional value of $580 million in the third sales cycle (Global Sightholder Sales and Auction Sales) of 2017, indicating ongoing strong demand from the global industry.

The latest figure compares with $666 million in the year-earlier sale. De Beers’ sales in the second cycle were $553 million and $729 million in the first cycle of the year.

Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group, said: “We saw the continuation of good rough diamond demand in Cycle 3 across the product range. This reflected positive sentiment from our customers following the Hong Kong International Jewellery Show in March.”