Petra Diamonds reports 55 percent rise in third-quarter revenue

(Reuters) - Petra Diamonds reported a 55 percent jump in third-quarter revenue helped by the sale of a 29.6 carat blue diamond and strong rough diamond prices. The diamond miner said third-quarter production rose 15 percent to 743,424 carats, driven by a 34 percent jump in production at its Finsch mine in South Africa. Revenue for the quarter ended March 31 rose to $163.9 million (97.3 million pounds). Petra has five producing mines in South Africa and one in Tanzania. (Reporting by Karen Rebelo and Roshni Menon in Bangalore; Editing by Rodney Joyce)