After months of a logistical halt, a 0.7% decrease for Fancy Color Diamonds

The Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF) announced today the results of the Fancy Color Diamond Index (FCDI) for Q3 2020.

2020 will be remembered as the year the world stood still. Literally, most commercial and cargo flights halted, stores closed down and business resolved to work remotely with no travel to the office. Aligning with the COVID-19 restrictions, many businesses had not only to change the way they operate, but to slow down or close production completely.

After two long quarters, in which the FCRF was unable to conduct a price survey, we are thrilled to publish the first index for 2020.

Q3 2020 results:

On average, Fancy color prices slid down by 0.7%, however, with transactions picking up in Q3 2020, the FCDI displayed a general stability in relation to this chaotic period. The majority of categories experienced a decrease of less than 1%, while Yellow showed lower drops than Blue and Pink. The Vivid category in all color segments presented stability (-0.1%), in comparison to the Fancy grade (-1.1%) and Fancy Intense (-0.9%) categories.

Yellow
Yellow diamonds presented the lowest decrease in Q3 (-0.3%). The category that showed a significant increase is the Fancy Intense Yellow 8 carat, rising by 1.0%. In contrast, the Fancy Intense Yellow 5 carat category decreased by (-2.4%).

Pink
Overall Pink diamond prices decreased by 0.8% in Q3 2020. The Fancy Vivid Pink category showed the greatest price drop (10 carat dropped by 3.5%), as well as the greatest price rise (1.5 carat rose by 1.6%).

Blue
Similar to Pinks, overall Blue diamond prices declined in Q3 by (-0.8%). The 1.5 carat category decreased by (1.8%) and the Fancy Vivid Blue 2 carat category increased by 1.5%.

FCRF Advisory Board member Oren Schneider said: “While diamond trading is not yet fully back to pre-COVID ‘normalcy’, we are clearly seeing an increasing fancy color diamond transaction activity as a result of governments easing regulatory restrictions. We are looking forward to further improvement in the business environment leading into 2021."

The Fancy Color Diamond Index is published by the non-profit Fancy Color Research Foundation (FCRF), tracking pricing data for Yellow, Pink, and Blue fancy color diamonds in major global trading centers – Hong Kong, New York, Geneva and Tel Aviv.