Shares of and rallied sharply on Wednesday, closing 2.35 per cent and 4.88 per cent higher, respectively, after the government imposed a three-year safeguard duty on steel imports from select countries.
Tata Steel closed at ₹179.93, up ₹4.13 from the previous close of ₹175.80, after touching an intraday high of ₹181.40. JSW Steel ended at ₹1,165.90, gaining ₹54.30 from Monday’s close of ₹1,111.60, with the stock reaching a high of ₹1,169.
The Finance Ministry on Tuesday published an order imposing safeguard duties of 12 per cent in the first year, 11.5 per cent in the second year, and 11 per cent in the third year on non-alloy and alloy steel flat products, including hot rolled coils, cold rolled sheets, and plate mill products. The duty, effective from April 21, 2025, to April 20, 2028, will apply to imports from China, Vietnam, and Nepal, but excludes specialty steel products such as stainless steel.
This follows a temporary 200-day tariff of 12 per cent imposed in April 2025, which expired on November 6. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies recommended the extended duty after finding evidence of a “recent, sudden, sharp and significant increase in imports” causing injury to the domestic industry.
Market analysts expect the duty to protect margins and revenue of domestic steelmakers by making imported steel up to 12 per cent costlier than domestically produced steel, which is currently priced at par with imports. The move comes amid global trade friction over Chinese steel exports, triggered by US President Donald Trump’s steel tariffs.
Tata Steel recorded a traded volume of 508.97 lakh shares worth ₹916.61 crore, while JSW Steel saw 58.82 lakh shares change hands valued at ₹682.80 crore on the NSE.