Jewelry
Diamond Prices Are in Free Fall in One Key Corner of the Market
De Beers has been forced to slash prices aggressively for one of its benchmark products.
A lab-grown diamond in Paris.
Photographer: Valeria Mongelli/BloombergOne of the world’s most popular types of rough diamonds has plunged into a pricing free fall, as an increasing number of Americans choose engagement rings made from lab-grown stones instead.
Diamond demand across the board has weakened after the pandemic, as consumers splash out again on travel and experiences, while economic headwinds eat into luxury spending. However, the kinds of stones that go into the cheaper one- or two-carat solitaire bridal rings popular in the US have experienced far sharper price drops than the rest of the market.