AGTA Announces Closing of Gemological Testing Center
from AGTA
The American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) announced today that the AGTA Gemological Testing Center (GTC) will close effective July 29th, 2009. "The GTC has enjoyed great support over the past decade from the AGTA membership and the colored gemstone industry as a whole," stated Douglas K. Hucker, AGTA CEO. "But with this extended economic downturn and the expense of operating a facility in New York, the association can no longer devote the level of resources necessary to keep the laboratory operating." More

NRC Decision on Imported Irradiated Gemstones Prior to November 2007
from Rapaport
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NCR) notified the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC) and American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) that they will take no action against licensees, importers and distributors or others who imported or sold irradiated gemstones in the United States during a period when no NRC licensed entities operated in the U.S. From 2001 to 2007, there were no licensed entities operating in the U.S. Since November 2007, three entities in the U.S. have been granted appropriate NRC licenses. More

Obama Renews Ban on Ruby, Jade from Myanmar
from Ethiopian Review
President Barack Obama has renewed sanctions aimed at the military junta that rules Myanmar, continuing the ongoing ban on the importation of jade and rubies into the United States. Congress reauthorized the sanctions last week and the president signed the bill into law, dashing the hopes of the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA), the World Jewelry Confederation (CIBJO) and several other jewelry organizations worldwide that united earlier this summer to urge Congress to consider lifting the U.S. ban on rubies imported from Myanmar. More

Rare 'Vivid Pink' Diamond Could Break Sale Record
from Reuters
A rare, 5-carat pink diamond will be sold in Hong Kong this December by Christie's, which expects the stone to hover near world record prices, thanks in part to the buying prowess of top Asian jewelry collectors. The stone, set in a so-called "cushion-cut" ring by famed jewellers Graff Diamonds, is expected to fetch between $5-$7 million, in reach of the current world auction record for a pink diamond -- a 19.66-carat stone that sold in Geneva for $7.4 million in 1994. More

Playing Dangerous Games With Indian Diamond Banks
from IDEX
In Mumbai diamond circles there is much talk about a candid "name and shame" letter in which a major diamond industry financing institution identifies a number of clients who are defying their borrowing covenant with the bank, defaulting on their obligations and skirting the laws of the land. The letter notes that "in the face of continuing default, we would have no option but to blacklist the firms, companies, their associates and buyers with DTC, Dun & Bradstreet and with world-wide [diamond] bourses." More

Men Saying 'I Do' to Tungsten Rings
from NewsOK
That little band of gold that men started wearing in the 1940s isn't the only choice when it comes to wedding rings these days. Along with yellow gold and white gold, there's platinum, titanium, palladium and tungsten, the industry's current darling. Tungsten started grabbing attention a couple of years ago as grooms gravitated toward rings heavy on style and cheaper on the bank account. More

Archeologists Find Bulgarian Princess Buried with Bling
from The Sofia Echo
The tomb of a Bulgarian princess was discovered in the northern Bulgarian town of Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria's medieval capital, the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) said. The princess was found wearing "luxurious clothes trimmed with golden ribbon; excellently crafted jewelry; a golden ring, earrings, silver and golden pins were also found around the buried body," the BNR said. More