Nifty Metal index was the top gainer among the Nifty sectoral indices on August 19, gaining 1.87 per cent on August 19 as the three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange gained 1.1 percent.
The pack was led by National Aluminium Company Limited, which rose 4.35 percent, followed by Hindalco Industries (4%), Hindustan Copper (3.17%), Vedanta (3.15%), Jindal Stainless (3.14%) among others.
Tata Steel touched an intraday high of Rs 154.3 per share on the National Stock Exchange (NSE), rising 3.2 percent while NMDC gained 1.26 percent to Rs 220.20 apiece.
The sharp increase was driven by several factors, including rising demand from China and optimism about a possible Federal Reserve rate cut as early as September, as fears of a US recession subsided.
As prices declined, Chinese consumers increased their purchases of copper ahead of the country's traditional autumn demand.
Copper prices saw a modest rise, with the most-traded September copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange increasing by 0.4 percent to 73,900 yuan ($10,347.53) a ton. This follows copper's first weekly gain in six weeks.
Meanwhile, gold prices too hovered near the historic $2,500 mark as traders booked profits after bullion reached an all-time high in the previous session, driven by expectations of a US interest rate cut next month.
Last week's economic reports from the United States, including retail sales, inflation, and producer prices, eased concerns of a downturn that had been triggered by weaker employment data earlier in the month.
Looking ahead, minutes from the Federal Reserve's July policy meeting and a speech by Chair Jerome Powell at Jackson Hole Symposium on August 23 will be keenly watched.
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