Govt bond trading volumes drop 25% in October as uncertainty builds

Traders step back from bonds post heavy losses in September; activity largely concentrated in the primary market

Transaction volumes in government bonds, which are the pricing benchmarks for a vast variety of credit products, declined sharply in October as traders kept an arm’s length from the secondary market after racking up heavy losses the previous month.

Uncertainty about the degree to which the Reserve Bank of India may tighten monetary policy further also led to the trading community taking a backseat, with the activity in bonds being largely concentrated in the primary market, treasury officials said.

Data released by the Clearing Corporation of India showed that daily average trading volumes in October were at Rs 35,098 crore,