A week ago, US President Joe Biden imposed a new tariff hike on Chinese products, which is projected to affect around $18 billion in annual imports from China. He accused China of heavily subsidising products, causing Chinese companies to produce more than what the market can absorb and then dumping the excess at unfairly low prices. He said, “When you follow tactics like this, you’re not competing. It’s not competition, it’s cheating.”

Since the tariff hike on May 14, the Nifty Metal index as of May 22 has posted a sharp rally of 9.1%, as Indian exporters stand to gain from a fairer playing field. However, experts caution about US tariffs diverting the dumping of Chinese goods to India.

In this edition of Chart of the Week, we will be looking at the performance of India’s metal index, Nifty Metal, over the past year. As of May 22, the index has risen 76.6%, outperforming the benchmark Nifty 50, which has increased by 24.1%. This rise is mainly due to quick government intervention against Chinese dumping and surging commodity prices globally.

Hindustan Zinc and Vedanta drove index gains in the past quarter

In the past quarter, the metal index rose 24.4%, with approximately 70% of the gains driven by Vedanta and its subsidiary Hindustan Zinc. Since March 28, 2024, Vedanta and Hindustan Zinc have surged by 81% and 154%, respectively. This rally can be attributed to clarifications on debt distribution post-demerger and rising prices of base metals such as zinc, lead and silver.

On September 29, 2023, Vedanta's Chairman, Anil Agarwal, announced the creation of independent verticals through the demerger of Vedanta and Hindustan Zinc. He expects the demerger to be completed by the end of this year. The company also clarified that debt will be divided among demerged entities based on the ratio of assets allocated. In Q4FY24, the company reduced its debt by 10% QoQ to Rs 56,338 crore.

Hindustan Copper is the best-performing stock in the index, with gains of 299% in the past year. The company's shares have consistently risen in line with increased demand and movements in copper prices. Copper, an essential base metal, plays a pivotal role in the energy transition ecosystem, serving as a key component in manufacturing electric vehicles, power grids, and wind turbines. Recently, speculations of a shortage fueled by talks of output cuts by smelters have led copper prices to surge by over 25% since the start of the year.

Commodity trading company Adani Enterprises also gained 59.4% in the past year. On May 22, the company surged 18.9% as the conglomerate received a clean chit from the Supreme Court of India regarding the Hindenburg case. The apex court appointed a six-member committee following allegations of stock manipulation and accounting fraud by U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research.

Selling by FPIs led index to decline in the Sept-Oct 2023 period

Among all the sectors, the metals and mining sector saw the highest FPI outflow of Rs 8,531 crore in FY24. Companies faced major hurdles due to the dumping of steel at cheaper rates and sub-standard imports from China. Between April and July 2023, steel imports from China to India rose 62% YoY, leading to a significant sell-off by foreign portfolio investors (FPI) of Rs 12,009 crore in August and September last year.

In response, the Indian government imposed a five-year anti-dumping duty on specific types of Chinese steel in September 2023. This tax, levied on imported goods priced below fair market value, aims to curb Chinese imports. The industry is also expected to address production gaps in 2024, supported by policy reforms, incentives, and expansion plans by industry giants such as Tata Steel, Vedanta, and JSW Steel.

Expanding manufacturing PMI boosts outlook for the metal sector

Manufacturing activity, which is indicated by the Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), is said to be expanding when it is higher than 50. The PMI for India has been above 50 for all of the past year, signifying robust growth in the manufacturing space. Rising PMI is often directly correlated to the higher demand for metals. On April 1, the metal index rose 3.7% after both the US and China posted expansion in their manufacturing activity in March 2024.

The US saw its manufacturing activity expand in March 2024 as it posted a PMI of 50.3 for the first time since September 2022. Although this figure is just above the threshold of 50, which separates expansion from contraction (PMI below 50), it ended a 16-month streak of shrinking activity. 

Similarly, China's manufacturing activity expanded in March for the first time since September 2023, as its manufacturing PMI rose to 50.8 from 49.1 in February. The data offered some relief to China’s policymakers, even as a crisis in the property sector remains a drag on the economy.

Higher steel prices & anti-dumping duty help steel makers

In November 2023, the metal index posted a monthly gain of 8.8%. This rise came after steel-producing constituents witnessed a significant uptick in their share prices as they benefitted from the surging steel prices. This rise in steel prices was due to a rapid decline in inventories and a recovery in end-consumer demand. Since November 2023, companies like Steel Authority of India (SAIL), Tata Steel and JSW Steel have risen 110.3%, 49.5% and 27.5% respectively.

Another factor that is playing in their favour is the higher tariff imposed by governments across the globe to curb Chinese dumping. India saw a 62% rise in steel imports from China to India between April and July 2023, compared to the same period last year. The Indian government imposed an anti-dumping duty of $613 per tonne on flat base steel wheels from China for five years. Similarly, the US government on May 14 raised tariffs on some steel and aluminium products to 25%, citing China's "unfair" policies that were harming workers and businesses in the US. The rising anti-China mood in the commodity market has boosted Indian metal stocks, a trend that is likely to continue in the coming quarters.