Stock Market Wire: Shares in Firestone Diamonds (LON:FDI) fell despite a positive update on its operations in Lesotho and Botswana and the sale of all the goods on offer at its rough diamond tender.
Chief executive Tim Wilkes said: "We are very pleased with the performance of the plant at Liqhobong over the past two months.
"We are implementing a programme of continued improvement and enhancement to maximize the recovery of diamonds and we are confident that we will see positive results over the coming weeks.
"The performance of the mineral resource has been outstanding with respect to grade, mine call factor and diamond assortment.
"The recovery of three plus 100 carat diamonds, albeit broken, confirms Firestone's conviction that the resource has the ability to produce much higher value diamonds than recovered to date.
"These positive indicators bode well for Firestone as we shift our focus towards phase 2 of the project, being the development of a world class diamond mine and a purpose built plant facility."
Shares in Xstrata (LON:XTA) were also down after it agreed an all-shares merger with Glencore that would create a $90bn natural resources group.
Xstrata's operating businesses and Glencore's marketing functions will continue to operate under their existing brands.
It is proposed that the combined entity will be called Glencore Xstrata International, listed on the London and Hong Kong Stock Exchanges, with its headquarters in Switzerland and will continue as a company incorporated in Jersey.
Xstrata chief executive Mick Davis said: "A merger between Glencore and Xstrata offers a unique opportunity to create a new business model in our industry to respond to a changing environment.
"It is the logical next step for two complementary businesses, each with an outstanding track record of shareholder value creation, entrepreneurial management and a proven ability to spot valuable opportunities and capitalise on them."
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