economy status - recession fears/credit crisis = cheaper rings/diamonds?

[lovehersomuch]

just wanted to see if any of you noticed better deals out there for diamonds and enagement rings or wedding bands due to the current state of the economy. a lot of retailers are having a hard time selling items to consumers since they are becing more conservative.

what do you all think?

 

[lisa1.01fvs1]

Hi, just got off the phone w/ my financail advisor and we discussed this very thing as I''m really into diamonds and all.

The prices probably won''t drop much as the global market is swift.

Retailers that are established will stick around but the "mom & pop" shops might go under. So maybe you can find some deals there.

First things people do in tight times is stop eating out, getting their nails done and yep buying diamonds.

I hope diamonds drop in price but doubt it.

 

[baby monster]

There was a discussion here about the prices recently and one of the experts mentioned that the diamond market in China is heating up as middle class there has more disposable income and the engagement rings are becoming more popular. It seems that, just like with gasoline, diamonds are a global product and US is no longer the only market with demand.

 

[tradergirl]

I''m a equity and commodities trader who likes bling

I''m definitely seeing deals from private sellers and lowball offers being accepted. Some people are having to sell jewelry to make mortgage payments and other debt payments. I''ve bought several items in the past few months, including a diamond and platinum Tiffany ring for 45% of retail.

 

[jackk]

Well when the dollar does bad precious metals (gold, silver, platinum, etc) tend to go up. So I would imagine rings might go up. With diamonds it is harder to tell.

 

[CaptAubrey]

Prices are going nowhere but up. There is significant and growing demand in India and China. The people feeling the pinch right now are not the retail jewelers (the high end folks especially are doing just dandy, thank you) but the manufacturers. A lot of them are just sitting on inventory rather than lose money by lowering prices to retailers. A couple of them have gone into Chapter 11 in the last year, and there will probably be more. But don''t expect that to result in lower prices at retail. Retail margins are pretty thin right now, and any hypothetical decrease in the wholesale cost of diamonds isn''t likely to get passed on to the consumer.

Historically, meaningful drops in diamond prices have been very rare (cue complaints about De Beers here). When they''ve come, it only been in response to artificial spikes in prices, such as what occurred when the diamond investment market collapsed in the early 80s.

 

[lisa1.01fvs1]

Date: 2/28/2008 2:57:41 PM
Author: tradergirl
I''m a equity and commodities trader who likes bling

I''m definitely seeing deals from private sellers and lowball offers being accepted. Some people are having to sell jewelry to make mortgage payments and other debt payments. I''ve bought several items in the past few months, including a diamond and platinum Tiffany ring for 45% of retail.

Hi tradergirl, I''m a Tiff lover as well.

Do you mind my asking how/where you got such a great deal?

And do you have any pics. to share?