Christie’s Data Shows Auction Buyers Shift to Gemstones, Diamonds Stable

Christie’s Luxury Trends Report for 2025, the auction house’s first Luxury Trends Report, shows “surging” demand for coloured gemstones and a concurrent cooling in white‑diamond momentum. The report identifies emeralds, rubies and sapphires as the primary focus of increased bidding in 2025 and notes “record‑setting interest” in Paraiba tourmalines, while white diamonds “stabilized” and prices “leveled,” with “no significant upward movement in demand or valuation, according to the report.”

The coloured‑stone story at Christie’s was emphatic. Emeralds, rubies and sapphires drew the bulk of competitive activity across sale rooms, the report says, with bidders shifting attention and budget away from conventional white‑diamond lots toward richly hued gems. Paraiba tourmalines emerged as an outsized phenomenon, described in the report by the precise phrase “record‑setting interest,” a mark that suggests both rare examples and intense, concentrated bidding.

Pearls returned to the foreground alongside coloured stones. “Pearls also saw a global resurgence, with prices rising for both necklaces and single‑pearl earrings,” the report states, calling out gains across classic strands and modern singular‑pearl pieces. That dual movement — renewed appetite for traditional pearl necklaces and for museum‑worthy single‑pearl earrings — signals a broader reappraisal of organic gems at auction.

By contrast, Christie’s portrayal of the white‑diamond market was deliberately muted. Demand for white diamonds “stabilized” in 2025; the house recorded that prices had “leveled” and concluded that it “experienced no significant upward movement in demand or valuation, according to the report.” For auction consignors and collectors who track diamond indices, that language underlines a pause rather than a collapse: diamonds retain value, but uplift was absent in the year’s sale results.

Looking ahead, Christie’s sets a clear agenda for 2026. “For 2026, Christie’s predicted that pearls and colored gemstones would see an even greater increase in demand, with Asia and the Middle East being key drivers of activity across the country, according to the report.” Those regional drivers — Asia and the Middle East — are called out explicitly as engines of demand that will shape lot selection and competitive dynamics in the coming year.

Visuals accompanying the findings reiterate Christie’s London provenance; the page included the repeated caption “Christie’s Auction House in London image” with Shutterstock credit. The auction house’s first Luxury Trends Report reframes the market calendar for 2026: coloured stones and pearls lead the story, while white diamonds sit steady as prices level.