De Beers Group’s rough diamond sales for Cycle 5 2018 amounted to US$ 575 million (provisional). This marked a rise over both, the sales in the previous cycle (Cycle 4 2018) which stood at US$ 554 million (actual) and in the comparable period of the previous year (Cycle 5, 2017) when sales amounted to US$ 541 million (actual).

Bruce Cleaver, CEO, De Beers Group, said: "Sentiment in the diamond industry’s midstream is positive following the JCK Las Vegas trade show at the start of the month, and we continued to see good demand for our rough diamonds across the product range."