The shares of Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC), Orissa Minerals Development Company and NMDC surged in trade on February 1 after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman spoke about rare earth magnets while presenting the Union Budget 2026-27. GMDC shares gained around 7%  to trade at Rs 617.80, while Orissa Minerals Development Company also rose around 7%  to Rs 4,776, and NMDC reversed earlier losses to trade nearly 2%  higher.

The move followed Budget commentary on building domestic capacity across the rare earth value chain, including a proposal to support mineral-rich states of Odisha, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu to establish dedicated rare earth corridors, building on the rare earth permanent magnets scheme launched in November 2025. The government also said it is expanding its rare earth scheme to promote mining, processing, research and manufacturing, alongside broader manufacturing enablers such as cluster-based chemical parks and CPSE-led high-tech tool rooms for locally designing, testing and producing high-precision components at scale.

Market participants appear to be treating listed miners as near-term proxies to the policy theme, given the absence of a true listed rare-earth pure play in India. Investors are factoring in potential upside from higher exploration activity, project awards, value-add partnerships and downstream localisation, though the durability of the re-rating is likely to depend on implementation details such as corridor timelines, incentive design and clarity on how mining and processing opportunities are allocated.

GMDC is a Gujarat government enterprise with mineral operations including lignite and bauxite, Orissa Minerals Development Company is a miner with assets in Odisha, and NMDC is among India’s largest iron ore producers; the trio is being watched as liquid listed beneficiaries of the broader critical minerals and domestic manufacturing push signalled in the Budget.