GemThoughts

OK!  Tomorrow is Friday and I am ready to have two days off from insanity.  The stock market fully reflects public sentiment, namely confusion, anxiety, fear, amazement, and disgust.  It has been a roller coaster of feelings and money, possibly good for day traders and computer-driven automated transactions, but not for us mere mortals.  Trillions blown and trillions recovered, while most of us stand about with our mouths open in amazement.  We read reports in the media that the rich (maybe the super-rich) continue to spend lavishly, and some retail sales reports show strong trends.  (Macy's reports that jewelry was one of their strong categories.)  On the flip side, some vendors of high end goods say business is awful.  Mass market retailing in July was weak.  We will see what the reports say.  We see the stunning rise in diamond prices weakening in some categories.  And gold has become an emotional commodity, as even sovereign...

The diamond industry is grappling with an issue that has been looming over everyone's heads for some years.  Moti Ganz, president of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association, just released a statement in which he claims that the rising number of tenders of rough endangers the business.  He says that without some base of established sights, where manufacturers can rely on supply, companies will have increasing difficulty sustaining factory operations, never mind invest in new factories.  He does concede that some companies failed when they lost their sights in the past number of years, but he feels that the problems inherent in tenders are worse. Perhaps.  But there are some hard facts--and reasonable speculations--that counter his position.  The producers see the realities of the working market.  Boxes are flipped immediately for profits.  Other goods pass through many hands at times before being converted.  And major ...