Diamond industry 'in trouble' as lab-grown gemstones tank prices further | Hacker News Reader

Diamond industry 'in trouble' as lab-grown gemstones tank prices further

cnbc.com

88 pointskeploy39 comments

Good. The diamond industry has destroyed multiple countries, one of which I lived in (Sierra Leone). Screw em.

Also the only reason the prices of “natural” diamonds are high is because of intentionally constricted supply

This limits the supply, but we also must remember that the reason there's enough demand to justify the diamond industry to do this kind of shady stuff is due to marketing. I seriously doubt that diamonds, and especially natural diamonds, would be as popular as they are without the marketing, since the lab-grown ones are indistinguishable in all but price, if one wants one.

Famously of course, marketing is responsible for the relative prevalence of diamond wedding and engagement rings. That they'd have to be worth N months' or years' salary? All marketing. And it has clearly worked, given how prevalent it is. And it has worked so well in fact, that this very idea has been embedded into wide parts of Western society.

> I seriously doubt that diamonds, and especially natural diamonds, would be as popular as they are without the marketing, since the lab-grown ones are indistinguishable in all but price, if one wants one.

Price is often the point. Diamonds are conspicuous wealth, an easy way to demonstrate "I'm better than you because my diamond is bigger/clearer/natural" for people who think like that.

> iamonds are conspicuous wealth

[veblen good](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Veblen_good).

> Diamonds are conspicuous wealth, an easy way to demonstrate "I'm better than you because my diamond is bigger/clearer/natural" for people who think like that.

But are they an easy way? A fake looks the same except under careful inspection and is totally lawful.

Some fancy car or designer clothes are at least unlawful to fake, even if sometimes faked.

Seriously. De Beers has held as many diamonds in storage as the entire world supply, specifically to manipulate the "industry".

Personally, the idea that everyone has to have one to get married is just stupid.

Sadly, the meme generations have just reinforced these ritual practicies...

Down 17% in nominal terms over the last 10 years [1]. Add the 32% the dollar has lost in that period [2], and you’re looking at a 50% drop in purchasing power.

You’d have done much better in Treasuries [3].

[1] https://www.paulzimnisky.com/roughdiamondindex

[2] https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/

[3] https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/REAINTRATREARAT10Y

Good. Diamond is a wonder material that would bring about dramatic changes if it were more widely available. Not just grit or gemstones, it’s conductive and self lubricating properties are woefully under utilized. Imagine ways, diamond coated shafts, and bearings that last billions of cycles. Not to mention its semiconductor properties.

Hot take: it's not going to stop at diamonds. Marriage is expensive. Weddings are expensive.

Honestly, if you compare it to the other really expensive things that happen around the same stage of life... buying a home, having children... Unless I'm from a highly religious family(also in decline), I can tell you easily which one I'd call pass on.

https://ifstudies.org/blog/1-in-3-a-record-share-of-young-ad...

I paid $50 to rent a gazebo at our town hall. No regrets having an inexpensive wedding.

I remember the honeymoon we splurged on, much better value, much less planning and coordination to worry about.

Marriage costs $37 dollars in Mississippi, FYI. Celebrations around it, that's a different story.

Room temperature take:

Weddings are expensive. Marriage costs almost nothing.

Divorces have a reputation money wise as well. ;)

Can be expensive.

Ours was about £500, 25+ years ago. Still together now.

Depends: marriage can be expensive for a rich asshole marrying a piece of crap who's terrible at spending someone else's money.

For certain kinds of rich people to whom being able to waste money is a demonstration of their self-worth, having a spouse who spends money like some people breathe air is a feature, not a bug.

To be fair it’s not like they’re burning banknotes, that money goes somewhere.

I've read that a century ago, about a third of engagement stones were precious stones other than diamonds. So, a triumph of marketing.

This is all delusional.

I am basically anti-marriage for myself but an expensive diamond ring is acting like a form of collateral. It is a form of insurance that one party is not completely fraudulent about their financial situation.

Imagine that, these long held traditions actually have practical purposes and are not just random nonsense that is so easily solved by technology.

People hopelessly addicted to social media and bullshit are just total suckers for these type of stories though.

“It is a form of insurance that one party is not completely fraudulent about their financial situation.”

The credit industry has entered the room.

Go with moisonnaite, not lab grown diamonds!

+1 for moissanite!

I went with moissanite for my engagement ring. A lab grown diamond with equivalent specs was $13000 (AUD). The moissanite was $700 (AUD) which was in line with other international jewellery vendors' prices. You can get much cheaper prices than what we paid but we were happy to go through the jeweller's preferred vendor rather than sourcing it ourselves.

I had considered other gems like emerald, sapphire, etc. but I'm rough on my hands and wanted something really tough.

I felt a bit silly that I wanted a ring at all, tbh. Just not getting one is an option we considered. I like shiny things and don't own any other jewellery. That's my excuse and I'm running with it!

I really love it. It's so dazzling it distracts me sometimes when the light plays on it. I'm a bit embarrassed when people think it's a diamond; we've got a million other things we'd spend tens of thousands of dollars on that's not a shiny rock.

Anyway, moissanite is great.

Moissanite is... also lab grown?

Lab grown is not a bad thing.

I agree, I’m just noting it isn’t a distinction between the two.

Also naturally occurring moisonnaite is much, much, much rarer than diamond :)

Moissanite isn't exactly cheap either.

Moissanite is sub $100/carat if you have the right vendor. Not expensive at all.

How come?

Shinier than diamonds, for one. Much cheaper than even lab grown diamonds, for two. Almost as hard, and generally even fewer deficits than diamonds (except lab ones which are basically deficit free, just like moissinite).

It's also a lattice of Carbon and Silicon, a symbolic reflection of our modern cyborg world.

Oooh, I like this.

Related discussions over the years:

Diamonds Suck (2006)

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12944464

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17186457

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=38247300

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26698511

What's a good source for quality, cheap lab grown diamonds?

I wonder how much effect feminism had on this.

I for one hope feminism had EVERY effect on this!

Good.

Good!

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