I think most people know by now that diamonds actually have very little value. De Beers has a monopoly on the diamond market and in order to keep the prices of diamonds inflated, they restrict the supply that's released for retail purposes. By increasing the demand and then intentionally limiting the supply, they are able to outrageously bloat the value and price of diamonds. If all the diamonds that De Beers had stored away were put on the market today, they would be worth almost nothing.
There are about a billion reasons this infuriates me, Africa being number one, but that is for another rant. Today I read here that De Beers is doubling their ad campaign expenditures in the United States. Their logic being that in an economic crisis people will want to buy something that is "forever," rather than wasting their money on the trends of the day. The LAST thing people need to do is go out and buy a diamond- sorry all you diamond lovers. Go put that that money in a savings account, college savings fund, buy property, gas, etc. and if you must buy precious gems, purchase a ruby, they are the most rare stone. Fun Fact, the phrase "A Diamond is Forever" is the most recognized ad slogan from the 20th century- De Beers coined the phrase in order to increase the public "oh la la" perception of diamonds. In 1939 they launched the first ever ad campaign that linked diamonds and engagements; prior to that, diamonds were not part of an engagement.
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