THE company which masterminded the centrepiece diamond exhibition at the Millennium Dome has seen the sparkle return to its global sales.

De Beers, the world's biggest diamond miner, said the market had suffered because of the conflict in Iraq and the spread of the Sars virus.

But the South African group said sales had picked up as confidence recovered.

De Beers, which is 45 per cent owned by London mining firm Anglo American, sells rough diamonds from mines in South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Tanzania to the jewellery industry through its London marketing arm DTC.

Overall, DTC's sales increased by three per cent in the first six months of the year to £1.81bn as falling interest rates encouraged customers to build up stocks.

The group said: "If strong demand for rough diamonds continues through the second half, De Beers' results for the year as a whole should be ahead of the previous year."

De Beers housed a collection of 12 diamonds during the Millennium Dome's term as a visitor attraction.

Included in the dozen was the Millennium Star, widely regarded as the purest and most beautiful diamond in the world.

It was crafted from one of the biggest diamonds ever found - a 777-carat stone discovered by accident in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1990.

Four men were jailed last February for attempting to steal the Dome's diamond collection.