Metal stocks hit hard; Tata Steel tanks nearly 8%

New Delhi:  Shares of metal firms were hit hard on Monday after US President Donald Trump's tariff hikes and retaliation from China fanned fears that a full-blown trade war will impact economic growth across the globe.

The stock of National Aluminium Company Ltd tanked 8.18 per cent, Tata Steel slumped 7.73 per cent, JSW Steel tumbled 7.58 per cent, SAIL dropped 7.06 per cent, and Jindal Steel & Power Ltd lost 6.90 per cent on the BSE.

Shares of Vedanta dived 6.90 per cent, Jindal Stainless Ltd declined 6.36 per cent, Hindalco Industries went lower by 6.26 per cent, NMDC (5.75 per cent), Hindustan Zinc (4.89 per cent) and APL Apollo Tubes (4.77 per cent).

The BSE metal index dropped 6.22 per cent to 26,680.16.

Stock markets fell like a pack of cards on Monday, with the Sensex crashing 2,226.79 points or 2.95 per cent to settle at 73,137.90, recording its third day of decline. During the day, the index slumped 3,939.68 points or 5.22 per cent to 71,425.01.

The NSE Nifty tumbled 742.85 points or 3.24 per cent to settle at 22,161.60. Intra-day, the benchmark dropped 1,160.8 points or 5.06 per cent to 21,743.65.

The steeper-than-expected reciprocal tariffs by the Trump Administration have fuelled recession fears and raised concerns over global economic growth, leading to a sharp slump in metal stocks.

Shares of metal companies had tanked more than 8 per cent on Friday.

"China decided to retaliate with a 34 per cent tariff on all US imports effective April 10, opting not to negotiate. Investors fear that the new tariffs imposed by Trump will weaken demand for industrial commodities. This could be worsened if impacted countries retaliate, leading to a global trade war," Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities, said.

In Asian markets, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index tanked more than 13 per cent, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 plunged nearly 8 per cent, Shanghai SSE Composite index dropped over 7 per cent and South Korea's Kospi sank over 5 per cent.

US markets ended sharply lower on Friday.

"The market turbulence was further aggravated by China's announcement of retaliatory tariffs on US goods, raising concerns over a possible escalation into a broader trade war.

"This development has sparked fears of global economic disruptions, and the impact is being felt across international markets - a trend that could persist given the current uncertainty," Ajit Mishra, SVP - Research at Religare Broking Ltd, said.