Jewelry sales for Sotheby's in 2012 surged to a record $460.5
million. The auction house stated that revenue from its jewelry sales
was propelled by the success of private collections, exceptional
diamonds and gemstones and historical jewels with noble provenance.
Sotheby’s jewelry auctions worldwide achieved an average of 84 percent
sold by lot. Seventy-two lots sold for more than $1 million, with six
surpassing the $5 million mark.
One highlight for the year came
from a record sale of various-owner jewels at Sotheby’s Geneva, where
the total achieved $108.4 million in May.
In
the Americas, Sotheby’s experienced its highest single-day total for
jewelry in December when its New York auction achieved $64.8 million.
Sotheby’s annual total of $114.5 million in Hong Kong marked the
company’s second-biggest year of jewelry and jadeite sales in Asia.
During
the year, Sotheby's auctioned jewelry from the collections of Brooke
Astor, Estée Lauder, Evelyn H. Lauder, Charles Wrightsman and others,
along with two rare ''white glove'' auctions for private collections
from Suzanne Belperron in Geneva in May, and a collection from Michael
Wellby in London in December.
Specific highlights of lots sold
included a 10.48-carat, deep blue briolette diamond (pictured),
purchased by Laurence Graff for $10,860,146 or $1,036,273 per carat, and
it achieved a world record price for any briolette diamond at auction.
As part of its noble jewels sale, Sotheby's sold the Beau Sancy diamond
(pictured below), a 34.98-carat, modified pear, double rose-cut stone
with a history dating back 400 years for $9,699,618. The diamond was
passed down through the royal families of France, England, Prussia and
the House of Orange.
Another highlight of the year came from a
Cartier bracelet that set a new auction record for a conch pearl jewel.
It was formerly in the personal collection of Queen Victoria Eugenia of
Spain (1887 to 1969) – the grandmother of Juan Carlos, the present king –
and this bracelet was one of the most important jewels created by
Cartier in the inter-war period -- it sold for $3,461,146.
An
important platinum, emerald and 22.84-carat emerald-cut diamond ring
from the estate of Brooke Astor sold for $1,202,500, but a 6.54-carat,
internally flawless pink diamond ring from the collection of Evelyn H.
Lauder sold for $8,594,500 in New York.
Sotheby's Hong Kong
realized $12,720,000 for a highly important 8.01-carat, fancy vivid
blue diamond ring, $5,100,000 for diamond necklace by Nirav Modi and
$3,340,000 for a very important and rare 9.08-carat pigeon's blood
Burmese ruby and diamond ring by Cartier.
Source:Diamonds.net
Rio Tinto, which trades its stock on the London and Australian stock exchanges, controls 78 percent shareholding in Murowa, an asset that produces over 300 000 carats per annum, while the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed RioZim Limited controls the remainder.
"Three companies have expressed interest in the mine," a source close to both Murowa and Rio Tinto said this week.
"One of the companies was here (recently), carrying out due diligence processes. Others are still working on that," the source said.
Murowa management had also expressed interest in purchasing shareholding in the diamond mining firm but it was not clear if they would be able to secure funding.
But given the demands of the country's tough empowerment laws, management was likely to be roped in by potential suitors.
Government has been championing controversial polices that have seen foreign investors releasing at least 51 percent shareholding in local companies to indigenous business people.
The empowerment programme reached its climax recently when Impala Platinum's Zimbabwean operating unit, Zimplats Holdings Limited, transferred controlling shareholding to locals.
Zimplats is the country's largest mining firm, which employs over 9 000 workers.
Rio Tinto had indicated that it planned to leave the diamond industry in March 2012, effectively inviting bids for its gem assets, including two other operations in Canada and Australia, worth about US$1,2 billion.
It was not possible to establish the names of the firms gunning for Murowa this week.
However, the sources said they were all global resources operations with significant financial muscle.
Over a week ago, one of the firms was scouring through Murowa's books but the outcome of the discussions was closely guarded.
This newspaper could not establish if RioZim, which said in May it was ready to exercise its pre-emptive rights in Murowa, was among the front runners.
RioZim, which was created in 2004 following the exit of Rio Tinto, had opened talks with Rio Tinto to take over the 78 percent.
However, RioZim has spent the better part of the past 12 months battling to clear a US$50 million debt owed to local banks, and it badly needs to recapitalise its gold mines and develop its substantial coal and chrome concessions.
RioZim was keen to exercise its pre-emptive rights to acquire Rio Tinto's shares in Murowa, Harpal Randhawa, whose private equity group Global Emerging Markets (GEM) recently bought 25 percent of RioZim, was quoted as saying in May last year.
"We are now in discussions with Rio Tinto Plc to acquire the 78 percent of Murowa that they want to offload," the GEM official was quoted saying at an investment conference in Harare.
This newspaper could not establish if RioZim, which said in May it was ready to exercise its pre-emptive rights in Murowa, was among the front runners.
RioZim, which was created in 2004 following the exit of Rio Tinto, had opened talks with Rio Tinto to take over the 78 percent.
However, RioZim has spent the better part of the past 12 months battling to clear a US$50 million debt owed to local banks, and it badly needs to recapitalise its gold mines and develop its substantial coal and chrome concessions.
RioZim was keen to exercise its pre-emptive rights to acquire Rio Tinto's shares in Murowa, Harpal Randhawa, whose private equity group Global Emerging Markets (GEM) recently bought 25 percent of RioZim, was quoted as saying in May last year.
"We are now in discussions with Rio Tinto Plc to acquire the 78 percent of Murowa that they want to offload," the GEM official was quoted saying at an investment conference in Harare.