Gemfields PLC (JSE:GML) has bounced back with a strong $32 million result from its latest sale of high-quality emeralds, held online and in Bangkok.
All 38 lots found buyers at an average price of $160.78 a carat, a marked improvement after a weak auction late last year.
The highlight was Imboo, a 11,685-carat emerald unearthed at the company’s Kagem mine in Zambia.
Mining there was briefly halted in January amid worries of oversupply, but operations restarted in May.
Yesterday’s outcome suggests appetite for Zambian emeralds is strengthening despite wider uncertainty in the gemstone trade.