London - Diamond company De Beers, once a niche business for global miner Anglo American [JSE:AGL], is rapidly rising to become the jewel in its crown - with a brighter outlook than many of its metals.
The division's profit leapt by more than a third in 2014 at the same time as its parent company Anglo saw earnings drop by about a quarter, hammered by a dive in prices of metals such as iron, copper and coal.
It overtook copper last year to become the second-largest contributor to group profit, fast closing the gap with the flagship iron ore business.