The pace at which FIIs have added short bets in index futures accelerated in the last three trading sessions, says Dharmesh Bhatt, Head-Derivatives Research at Systematix Institutional Research.
According to the NSE F&O data, FIIs have net sold index futures worth ₹10,397 crore thus far in the September series; Nifty OI now at 2-month high. Tech analysts flag key support levels on Nifty.
Market analysts expect volatility to rise on either side of the market in September based on the F&O and historical market data.
The Nifty August expiry delivered the most constructive positioning setup in four months, with improving rollover, rising carry and broader sectoral leadership, says Systematix in its F&O report.
Analysts at Axis Securities believe Nifty's strong June rollovers suggest a likely bullish conviction for the July series.
Analysts believe that significant Call Open Interest concentrated at 24,000, 24,100 and 24,200 Strikes suggests likely resistance around these levels.
FIIs have now net sold 83,828 contracts of Nifty futures in the last five trading sessions, the highest in back-to-back days in over 11 months.
Amid the ₹14,261.41 crore sell-off, Sudeep Shah of SBI Securities believes that FIIs build-up short positions in index futures over the last three sessions, indicating increasing bearish bets.
The Nifty Put-Call-Ratio (PCR) stands near 0.71, indicating a cautious-to-negative undertone in the market, says Dhupesh Dhameja, Derivatives Research Analyst at SAMCO Securities.
The Nifty rollovers to May were below average, suggesting a likely cautious stance among participants and slight hesitation to carry forward aggressive bets, says Axis Securities.
The futures & options market positioning reflects heavy short build-up, creating conditions for sharp but temporary short-covering rallies, says Systematix Institutional Equities.
According to data, FIIs net sold shares worth ₹19,584.70 crore in the cash market, and index futures worth ₹10,100.74 crore in the F&O segment in the last three trading sessions.
F&O stocks Indian Bank, SAIL, Uno Minda, TCS, KEI Industries, Wipro, Patanjali Foods, Oil India, RVNL and Naukri have witnessed high rollovers, states the Axis Securities report.
Despite Monday's sharp recovery, FIIs were net sellers of ₹1,228 crore in index futures yesterday. Here are the key highlights from the derivatives data.
Swiggy, Waaree Energies, Bajaj Holdings and Premier Energies to enter F&O space with effect from today, December 31, 2025. Nifty Lot Size to be lowered to 65 units.
The derivatives data reflects at a cautious and guarded market stance, with Call writers at slight advantage, explains Dhupesh Dhameja, Derivatives Research Analyst, SAMCO Securities.
The NSE F&O data shows that FIIs open interest in index futures has declined by over 14 per cent from its peak; amid net purchases of contracts worth ₹7,737.41 crore in the last 8 trading sessions.
FIIs long-short ratio in index futures has barely moved from 0.09 to 0.11, implying presence of heavy short bets in the August F&O series.
FIIs are holding 10 short positions in index futures for every long trade; historically Nifty has witnessed a short-covering rally after the ratio dropped to such lows, shows F&O data.
Foreign investors net sold ₹14,452 crore, and ₹25,831 crore in stock & index futures, respectively in July; however, F&O rollovers hint at likely optimism going ahead.