Russian diamond monopoly ALROSA recently announced that its net profit fell to $340.5 million in 2000 from $371.5 million in 1999.

In a statement reported in the Dow Jones (DJ), Valery Rudakov, head of the Russian treasury, Gokhran, and co-chairman of ALROSA’s supervisory board said that “rough diamond extraction around the world is growing faster than consumption of diamond jewelry.”

The DJ also noted that though earlier this year Rudakov said he “didn’t exclude the possibility of Russia not signing a new trade agreement with De Beers at all,” officials seem to have since changed their minds because of difficult market conditions. Rudakov now stated that “any hard competition in such difficult market circumstances will be harmful.”

The DJ also noted that though earlier this year Rudakov said he “didn’t exclude the possibility of Russia not signing a new trade agreement with De Beers at all,” officials seem to have since changed their minds because of difficult market conditions. Rudakov now stated that “any hard competition in such difficult market circumstances will be harmful.”

ALROSA president Vyacheslav Shtyrov said that so far “ALROSA, Gokhran, ministries and state agencies can’t agree on a common approach to the contact.”