New Delhi, April 27 -- Investors who timed the metal rally well seem to have made quick gains, especially in aluminium stocks. Shares of most aluminium producers are now trading just a notch below their lifetime highs, reflecting enthusiasm in the sector.

National Aluminium Co is 0.6% shy of its all-time high. Hindalco is about 1% away. Vedanta is about 8% below its peak.

Over the past year, the rally in metal stocks has been sharp and broad-based. Nalco has surged 172%, Hindalco is up 65% and Vedanta has gained 75%, all comfortably outpacing the Nifty Metal index, which itself climbed 47% over the same period.

Aluminium staged a defiant solo rally in March while most non-ferrous metals stumbled: Tin on the London Metal Exchange led th...