De Beers cuts diamond prices sharply as weak demand pressures market

De Beers has implemented some of the steepest official diamond price cuts in its history, marking a significant shift in strategy as the global diamond industry continues to grapple with weak demand, growing competition from synthetic stones, and a prolonged market downturn.

The latest price reductions were introduced during the company’s first sales cycle under a revamped customer structure, signalling what reports see as the end of De Beers’ years-long effort to keep its official prices above prevailing market levels, Bloomberg reported.

The move comes after the diamond producer significantly reduced the number of its approved buyers, known as sightholders, in a bid to channel more stones to its strongest and most financially resilient customers.

What they are saying

Industry sources familiar with the latest sales said prices across nearly all categories of rough diamonds were lowered, bringing De Beers’ official prices much closer to those in the secondary market, where traders, cutters and polishers buy and sell rough stones among themselves.

• Previously, De Beers’ prices were estimated to be between 5% and 50% higher than secondary market prices depending on the category of diamonds, making it increasingly difficult for buyers to generate profits amid weak consumer demand.
• The exact magnitude of the latest price reductions remains unclear. Earlier this year, the company adopted a one-line invoicing system, replacing detailed pricing for individual boxes of diamonds with a single invoice total. It also altered the composition of several assortments, making direct price comparisons more difficult.

What you should know

The latest price cuts come amid a broader restructuring of De Beers as the company grapples with one of the toughest periods in the global diamond industry’s history.

• In March 2025, Nairametrics reported that De Beers announced its exit from the laboratory-grown diamond market after prices for synthetic diamonds plunged by as much as 90%, largely due to an influx of low-cost supply from China.
• As part of the move, the company began winding down its Lightbox Jewelry brand, launched in 2018 to position lab-grown diamonds as affordable fashion accessories rather than premium gemstones.
• Lightbox adopted a transparent pricing model of $800 per carat, regardless of a diamond’s cut or clarity, in a bid to distinguish synthetic diamonds from natural stones. De Beers also disclosed that it was in discussions with potential buyers to dispose of Lightbox’s remaining assets, including inventory, as it exited the business.
• The challenges facing the diamond producer have also accelerated ownership changes at its parent company. In September 2025, Nairametrics reported that Botswana President Duma Boko declared his government’s intention to conclude a deal to acquire control of De Beers by the end of October, describing the transaction as a matter of the country’s “economic sovereignty.”
• Botswana has long sought greater control over the company, which remains central to its economy through diamond mining revenues.
• Meanwhile, Anglo American Plc, which owns an 85% stake in De Beers, has been pursuing a divestment of the business as part of a wider restructuring programme launched after it successfully resisted a takeover bid from mining giant BHP in 2024.

Most recently, in June 2026, Nairametrics reported that former De Beers Chief Executive Gareth Penny had emerged as the leading contender to acquire the diamond miner.

According to reports, the proposed sale has proven difficult to execute due to the prolonged slump in the global diamond market, while Botswana continues to push for a greater ownership stake in one of the industry’s most iconic companies.