India: OMC raises base prices by up to INR 350/t ($3.5/t) for upcoming iron ore auction

OMC will auction 3.833 mnt of iron ore (1.58-mnt lumps and 2.25-mnt fines) on 19 Feb'26. The miner increased the base prices of lumps by INR 100-300/t, while those of fines were raised by INR 150-350/t m-o-m. The hike could be attributed to expectations of healthy iron ore demand in Q4, expiry of merchant miners' FY'26 ECs, and bullish steel market sentiment.