Nifty futures continued to be traded at a discount of 8-15 points to the underlying index. August Nifty fell 1.80 points to close at 1,222.50 while the NSE S&P CNX Nifty settled at 1,233.95. September futures lost 0.85 points to 1,223.10.
Nifty futures added three lakh shares in open interest during the day. Significantly, there is a steady build up in open interest in the September futures as traders prefer to take a view on the broader markets.
Nifty futures saw a trading volume of Rs 1,119.61 crore arising out of 45,583 contracts. The total turnover of the F&O segment was around Rs 6,432.33 crore.
In Nifty options, the highest volume with 1,198 contracts traded was in the Nifty August call at 1240. Other calls among the top were at strikes of 1250, 1220 and 1230. The top traded Nifty put option was at the strike of 1220.
The implied volatility has increased in put options as trader used options to hedge their long positions. Around 6,668 contracts were traded at a notional value of Rs 165.70 crore today.
In stock futures and option segment, Maruti futures shed 3.5 lakh shares in open interest, as traders covered their short positions. The stock flared up 4.35 per cent and open interest increased in higher strike prices. ICICI Bank shed five lakh shares in open interest positions.
SBI shed 1.5 lakh shares in open positions. The implied volatility has increased in put options as traders used options to hedge their long positions. Interestingly, in many stocks margins have increased due to increase in open interest and this could lead to higher implied volatility.
