The next time you see this necklace, it will be on the red carpet at the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF). The British jewellery brand, David Morris, is the official jeweller for DIFF’s VIP Lounge this year, and will be adorning a select group of visiting celebrities with its one-of-a-kind pieces.
Established in 1962, David Morris is known for creating stunning couture jewellery using the finest gemstones. The company has never been short of celebrity admirers. Richard Burton opted for a heart-shaped David Morris diamond necklace as a Valentine’s Day gift for Elizabeth Taylor in 1965. James Bond is another long-standing fan – David Morris creations featured in Diamonds are Forever and The Man with the Golden Gun in the ’70s, and, more recently, in Tomorrow Never Dies and The World is Not Enough.
There’s no word yet on who will be sporting this piece. Valued at Dh36.2 million, the flower-shaped necklace took 12 months to make and was inspired by daisy chains. The vivid yellows come from a necklace from the 1920s, which was bought and then broken up to create this new piece.
“Celebrities are no different to our other clients; our clientele has an appreciation for unique pieces with flair,” says Jeremy Morris, the chief executive of David Morris. The uniqueness of its pieces, which are designed around specific stones, along with its popularity in this part of the world, were key factors behind DIFF’s decision to partner with the company. “Every year, we look for brands that appeal to the VIPs who visit our lounge. David Morris has exquisitely designed pieces and is a favourite among royalty and celebrities in the region and around the world,” says Katherine Raso of the DIFF VIP Lounge.
www.davidmorris.com
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Founders: Roman Axelrod, Valentyn Volkov
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How Tesla’s price correction has hit fund managers
Investing in disruptive technology can be a bumpy ride, as investors in Tesla were reminded on Friday, when its stock dropped 7.5 per cent in early trading to $575.
It recovered slightly but still ended the week 15 per cent lower and is down a third from its all-time high of $883 on January 26. The electric car maker’s market cap fell from $834 billion to about $567bn in that time, a drop of an astonishing $267bn, and a blow for those who bought Tesla stock late.
The collapse also hit fund managers that have gone big on Tesla, notably the UK-based Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust and Cathie Wood’s ARK Innovation ETF.
Tesla is the top holding in both funds, making up a hefty 10 per cent of total assets under management. Both funds have fallen by a quarter in the past month.
Matt Weller, global head of market research at GAIN Capital, recently warned that Tesla founder Elon Musk had “flown a bit too close to the sun”, after getting carried away by investing $1.5bn of the company’s money in Bitcoin.
He also predicted Tesla’s sales could struggle as traditional auto manufacturers ramp up electric car production, destroying its first mover advantage.
AJ Bell’s Russ Mould warns that many investors buy tech stocks when earnings forecasts are rising, almost regardless of valuation. “When it works, it really works. But when it goes wrong, elevated valuations leave little or no downside protection.”
A Tesla correction was probably baked in after last year’s astonishing share price surge, and many investors will see this as an opportunity to load up at a reduced price.
Dramatic swings are to be expected when investing in disruptive technology, as Ms Wood at ARK makes clear.
Every week, she sends subscribers a commentary listing “stocks in our strategies that have appreciated or dropped more than 15 per cent in a day” during the week.
Her latest commentary, issued on Friday, showed seven stocks displaying extreme volatility, led by ExOne, a leader in binder jetting 3D printing technology. It jumped 24 per cent, boosted by news that fellow 3D printing specialist Stratasys had beaten fourth-quarter revenues and earnings expectations, seen as good news for the sector.
By contrast, computational drug and material discovery company Schrödinger fell 27 per cent after quarterly and full-year results showed its core software sales and drug development pipeline slowing.
Despite that setback, Ms Wood remains positive, arguing that its “medicinal chemistry platform offers a powerful and unique view into chemical space”.
In her weekly video view, she remains bullish, stating that: “We are on the right side of change, and disruptive innovation is going to deliver exponential growth trajectories for many of our companies, in fact, most of them.”
Ms Wood remains committed to Tesla as she expects global electric car sales to compound at an average annual rate of 82 per cent for the next five years.
She said these are so “enormous that some people find them unbelievable”, and argues that this scepticism, especially among institutional investors, “festers” and creates a great opportunity for ARK.
Only you can decide whether you are a believer or a festering sceptic. If it’s the former, then buckle up.
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