- Recovery in sponge iron, finished steel prices supports sales
- Buyers eagerly stock up on high-grade ore amid tight supply
Iron ore e-auction sales volumes in Karnataka rose by 33% m-o-m to 1.17 million tonnes (mnt) in August 2025 against 0.88 mnt in July, as per BigMint’s data. Of the total volumes sold in August, fines accounted for 619,000 tonnes (t) and lumps 556,550 t.
Iron ore auction sales volumes in Karnataka showed a recovery in August, supported by an improvement in sponge iron and finished steel prices against July. The revival in downstream segments encouraged buyers to actively participate in auctions, which translated into higher offtake compared with July.
Although the monsoon in Karnataka did not significantly disrupt production, dispatches were affected to some extent. At the same time, the limited availability of high-grade ore provided additional support to auction sales, as buyers were keen to secure supplies amid limited availability. Together, these factors lifted overall e-auction sales volumes in August.
NMDC’s sales climb up m-o-m
National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), India’s largest iron ore miner, sold 988,000 t of iron ore from Karnataka via auctions in August 2025. This volume, comprising 572,000 t of fines and 416,000 t of lumps, marks a 43% increase compared with 691,000 t in July 2025.
Performance of other miners
Sandur Manganese and Iron Ore (SMIORE) emerged as the second-leading miner, recording 107,000 t of iron ore sales in August, comprising 26,000 t of fines and 81,000 t of lumps. Sales increased sharply from 35,000 t in July.
Vedanta sold 41,000 t of iron ore in August, including 40,000 t of lumps and only 1,000 t of fines, with the total down by 15% as compared to 48,000 t in the previous month.
Karnataka State Minerals Corporation Limited (KSMCL) sold 24,000 t of iron ore in August. The volume, which comprises 20,000 t of fines and 4,000 t of lumps, is lower by 54% as compared to 52,000 t in July.
R Praveen Chandra sold 11,550 t of lumps in August as compared to 15,400 t of lumps in July.
SKMEPL sold only 4,000 t of lumps in August as compared to 28,000 t of fines in the previous month.
U Krishna Prasad’s auction of 14,395 t of fines did not fetch a response from buyers.
Iron ore prices exhibit mixed trends m-o-m
Iron ore tags showed divergent movements in August, with monthly weighted average prices of iron ore Fe 60% fines falling and Fe 63% lumps remaining firm m-o-m. Weighted average prices of Fe 60% fines fell by INR 250/t m-o-m to INR 3,700/t and of Fe 63% lumps remained at INR 5,100/t. Prices are exclusive of taxes.
Outlook
Iron ore e-auction sales volumes in Karnataka are expected to remain firm in September, supported by consistent demand from sponge iron and steel producers. Participation is also expected from miners that remained inactive in August, which could further strengthen overall auction volumes in the coming month.
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