NMDC cuts iron ore lump price by ₹600 per tonne, fines by ₹500 per tonne

State-owned NMDC on Tuesday said it has slashed prices of iron ore lump and its fines by ₹600 and ₹500 per tonne, respectively, with immediate effect.

It has fixed the price of lump ore at ₹5,700 per tonne and fines at ₹4,850 a tonne, the country's largest iron ore miner said in a regulatory filing.

Lump ores or high-grade iron ores contain 65.5 per cent iron content, while fines are inferior-grade ores with 64 per cent or less iron content.

In the last price revision announced on June 4, NMDC had fixed the rate of the lump at ₹6,300 per tonne and that of fines at ₹5,350 per tonne.

The prices effective from July 1 are inclusive of royalty, district mineral fund (DMF), National Mineral Exploration Trust (DMET) and exclude cess, forest permit fee, transit fee, GST, environmental cess and other taxes.

According to market research firm BigMint, "The domestic steel market remained under acute pressure, as prices continued on their downward trajectory. Throughout June, the rebar index plunged nearly 5 per cent, while the hot rolled coil (HRC) index saw a milder drop of just 1 per cent, partly supported by safeguard duties that helped shield flat steel prices from the impact of weakening global trends".

Besides, NMDC's Chhattisgarh iron ore auction receives a weak response. The company auctioned 1,11,500 tonnes of iron ore from its Bacheli mines on June 12, with over 95 per cent remaining unsold, BigMint said.

Iron ore is one of the key raw materials used in the manufacturing of steel, and any movement in its prices has a direct impact on rates of steel, an alloy widely used in segments like construction, infrastructure, automobile and railways.

Hyderabad-based NMDC (formerly known as National Mineral Development Corporation) under the Ministry of Steel contributes around 17-20 per cent to India's total iron ore production.