MICHELE NORRIS, host:
From NPR News, this is ALL THINGS CONSIDERED. I'm Michelle Norris.
MELISSA BLOCK, host:
And I'm Melissa Block.
If you bought diamond jewelry between 1994 and 2006, you could get some of your money back. The giant South African diamond producer, De Beers, has agreed to a class action settlement worth $295 million. That money is to be divided between consumers and diamond sellers who have to file claims to recover some of what they paid. The lawsuits alleged that De Beers conspired to monopolize the diamond market and inflated prices.
Russell Shor is senior industry analyst with the nonprofit Gemological Institute of America. He says for nearly a century, De Beers controlled about 80 percent of the rough diamond production in the world.
Mr. RUSSELL SHOR (Senior Industry Analyst, Gemological Institute of America): And they marketed these diamonds through a system of sales called sites - which are ten sales yearly to a preselected group of clients. And essentially, De Beers sets the prices.
BLOCK: And is the idea that because they control so much of the market, they artificially inflated that price?
Mr. SHOR: Well, that was the allegation. De Beers - in my dealings with them - said that they priced according to what they thought the market would bear.
BLOCK: Now, De Beers has agreed to settle, but at the same time, they have not admitted wrongdoing. They say they're settling to put the matter behind them.
Mr. SHOR: Yes. And my interpretation is that they would like the settlement to sort of put the past behind them and allow them to move forward with doing business in the United States.
BLOCK: Let's talk about what this might mean for consumers who bought a diamond in this period. They have to file a claim. About $135 million of this $295-million settlement is set aside for consumers. How much do you think somebody might get back?
Mr. SHOR: Well, obviously, it would depend on how much they spent on the piece in the first place. But, you know, in doing the math, there are millions of diamond jewelry pieces sold each year. So, when you start dividing $135 million into the millions of consumers, I don't think they can look forward to a big payday.
BLOCK: Mr. Shor, because of this settlement, will it have a broader impact on the diamond market? I mean, do prices now come down?
Mr. SHOR: Prices probably will not come down for a number of reasons. One of these reasons that oil prices are so high, you have emerging economies - like India and China and the Middle East - which is not an emerging economy, but they're soaring right now because of oil prices - they are heavily into diamond jewelry. Sales in these countries are growing 20 to 30 percent a year. So, a lot of diamonds that would have been sold here are actually going to the emerging markets. I mean, having said that, with the economy the way it is, we may see some decline in diamond prices, but it probably wouldn't be a great deal.
BLOCK: Well, Russell Shor, thanks so much for talking to us.
Mr. SHOR: You're welcome.
BLOCK: Russell Shor, the senior industry analyst with the Gemological Institute of America in Carlsbad, California.