Germany Chancellor plans lithium deal with Serbia after Rio ruling
Olaf Scholz plans to visit Serbia this week to secure supplies of lithium that are critical for the nation’s energy transition and auto industry.
Russia’s Alrosa (MCX: ALRS) said on Wednesday it will allow buyers to get their hands on rough diamonds sooner than planned, as part of the company’s strategy to ease an ongoing undersupply in the market.
The world’s top diamond miner by output said it was giving its long-term clients, who account for 70% of the company’s sales, a chance to adjust their purchase schedules with “an option to adjust supply schedules between trading sessions.”
It also said it would hold an additional tender between trading sessions and would be buying stock from the state’s Gokhran later this month.
The diamond industry has rebounded since the start of the pandemic since stuck at home consumers bought stones instead of travelling and kept buying as the economy strengthened. This trend pushed cutters to buy more roughs to restock and fulfill the orders placed by jewellers and retailers, Alrosa said.
“We believe that this innovation, together with the Gokhran auction slated for late February 2022, will speed up progress in addressing current market deficit,” deputy chief executive, Evgeny Aguree, said in the statement.
Alrosa’s sales revenue jumped by 49% to $4.2 billion last year as demand exceeded supply, helping it recover from the hit it took at the start of the covid-19 pandemic.
The miner boosted production by 8% to 32.4 million carats by increasing output at deposits in Russia’s far east.
