EGL versus GIA and AGS

[rbjd]

Simple Question:

There seems to be a higher demand for GIA and AGS certificates on the internet than EGL.

Is it fair to say that an EGL diamond listed on the major internet vendor sites probably isn''t as good as an AGS or GIA diamond or else somebody would have sent it to AGS or GIA knowing it would command a higher price if it came back with a rating similar to EGL''s?

Put another way, if I was an internet retailer, why wouldn''t I send an EGL diamond to AGS or GIA to get certified when I know I''d get more money for it than it would cost me to get it certified?

Any experts care to comment or should I assume silence means I''m correct?

 

[rbjd]

On a related theme:

AGS 000 certified diamonds seem to command a higher price on the internet than GIA EX/EX ideal cut stones. I've been told by at least one retailer that AGS stones cost more because AGS gives more info on the certificate than GIA.

I'm well aware of GIA's reasons for not providing crown/pavilion angle info and the theories behind "no single ideal cut", but clearly AGS 000 stones command a higher price (despite some logical arguments that this should not be the case).

Therefore, if I were an internet retailer, wouldn't it be in my best interest to have all my GIA diamonds which were AGS 000 candidates sent to AGS knowing that I could get more money for them as AGS 000 stones than as GIA EX/EX stones? Can anybody give me a good reason as to why this wouldn't be the case?

Would I therefore be correct in assuming that AGS 000 stones are more likely to have better features than GIA EX/EX stones, at least on the internet?

Would this also explain why I'm having a hard time locating stones with AGS certificates that list AGS 1 or AGS 2 as the proportion grade?

Where are the AGS stones that are AGS 1 or 2 for proportion and 0 for symmetry and polish? Do they not exist because the retailer is better off with a GIA certificate in this instance? What are we not being told by the retailers?

This is simple logic. I mean, if I wholesale or retail diamonds, I'm obviously going to appraise them or have them appraised and probably run a Sarin analysis on the good ones. I know that relative to the value of the stone this costs a paltry amount. Why wouldn't I get the best (read "market preference") certificate I could to increase the market value of my stone?

Anybody have the guts to answer these questions or should I again assume silence means I'm right?