Market analysts are predicting high rough diamond prices in 2011.

Commodityonline.com cited a number of factors that are expected to keep the prices for rough diamonds high and even drive them up, mainly the Kimberley Process ban on exports of rough diamonds from Zimbabwe's Marange diamond fields and growing consumer demand for diamonds and diamond jewelry at all price points in the US and Asia.

RBC Capital Markets analyst Des Kilalea told miningmx.com that rough diamond prices had remained strong throughout 2010 and as the year closed had even surpassed the pre-crisis levels of 2008.

Kilalea noted that rough prices were driven by restricted production and sales by De Beers as well as "disciplined selling" by Russian diamond producer Alrosa. He observed that other than a $1 billion stockpile of rough diamonds held by Golkhan – the Russian Treasury, which bought up Alrosa's rough diamonds during the recession to prevent a market glut – there were no significant "above-ground" supplies of rough diamonds.

This analysis echoes remarks by World Federation of Diamond Bourses and Israel Diamond Exchange President Avi Paz at the 2010 China Diamond Conference in Shanghai, where he told conference participants that diamond producers had responded immediately to his call to cut back production when the global financial crisis hit.