De Beers said it plans to place its Venetia diamond mine in South Africa on care-and-maintenance for two years as part of ongoing cost cuts. The company, announcing the move on Monday, said the shutdown will not change its production targets because it will lift output at other sites. The diamond sector, worth roughly $80bn, is under severe stress: post-pandemic demand weakness, cooling luxury spending and rising acceptance of lab-grown diamonds have weighed on the market, with trade tensions an

De Beers said it plans to place its Venetia diamond mine in South Africa on care-and-maintenance for two years as part of ongoing cost cuts. The company, announcing the move on Monday, said the shutdown will not change its production targets because it will lift output at other sites. The diamond sector, worth roughly $80bn, is under severe stress: post-pandemic demand weakness, cooling luxury spending and rising acceptance of lab-grown diamonds have weighed on the market, with trade tensions and the Middle East war adding further pressure. Prior production cuts aimed at supporting prices have been undermined by oversupply from Angola and weak demand.