August 28, 2025

The June 2025 quarter painted a colorful picture for metal companies in India! Steelmakers danced to the tune of falling coking coal costs and government safeguard duties, allowing them to score big profits. Meanwhile, the non-ferrous players, juggling aluminium and zinc prices that slipped, faced a tougher game. Ferrous producers were the stars, enjoying strong profit growth due to higher domestic steel prices and softer coking coal costs. As Yes Securities noted, "Steel producers handled sequentially lower volumes comfortably, aided by firm prices and falling coking coal costs." Tata Steel and JSW Steel reported robust earnings, while SAIL took a hit due to inventory issues. Emkay Global Financial Services highlighted this winning streak, stating, "Steel companies reported aggregate EBITDA of Rs21,000 crore, beating market expectations." This came partly thanks to a smart government move in April—a 12% safeguard duty on certain flat steel products lasting 200 days. This duty helped cut finished steel imports by almost 29% year-on-year to 1.4 million metric tonnes in the quarter. But not all metals sparkled. Non-ferrous firms like aluminium, zinc, copper, and lead producers saw their revenues squeezed as global prices slid. The average London Metal Exchange aluminium price dropped 3% annually and 7% sequentially to $2,444 per tonne. Alumina prices slumped even further—down 16% year-on-year and 31% quarter-on-quarter to $359 per tonne. Emkay noted, "The non-ferrous segment posted a soft quarter, as lower aluminium and zinc prices led to a 15.2% sequential EBITDA fall to Rs20,900 crore in total." Here’s a silver lining: Emkay added that zinc and alumina prices climbed during the June quarter, hinting at better September quarter earnings for non-ferrous metals. Looking ahead, steel demand might stay slow thanks to monsoon rains dampening construction. But there’s hope! Domestic steel companies have hiked hot-rolled and cold-rolled coil prices by Rs1,000-2,000 per tonne in August, says Motilal Oswal Financial Services. Plus, with falling input costs, the steel sector could soften the blow from weaker demand. So, June 2025 was a thrilling rollercoaster—steelmakers cruising on cheaper coal and protectionist policies, while non-ferrous firms braved the storms of global price falls. Investors and industry watchers, keep your eyes peeled for the next chapter!

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Tags: Metal companies, Steelmakers, Non-ferrous metals, Coking coal, Steel prices, June quarter 2025,