Options Data Denotes Relatively Balanced Trading

Put-Call Ratio of OI at 0.93 indicates neutral trading mode for the week

Resistance level fell by 700 points to 22,400CE, while the support level rose by 900 points to 22,400PE. The 22,400CE has highest Call OI followed by 22,500/ 22,4450/ 22,600/ 22,700/ 23,000/ 22,800/ 22,900 strikes, while 22,400/22,450/ 22,500 strikes recorded hefty build-up of Call OI. However, several OTM and ITM Call strikes registered decline in OI. Coming to the Put side, maximum Put OI is seen at 22,400PE followed by 22,350/ 22,500/ 22,450/ 22,300/ 22,100/ 22,150/ 22,500 strikes. Further, Put ATM strikes 22,400/ 22,450/ 22,350 witnessed heavy addition of Put OI. Several Put ATM strikes witnessed OI fall in modest to reasonable range.

Dhirender Singh Bisht, associate vice-president (technical research) at SMC Global Securities Ltd, said: “In the derivatives market, prominent Call Open Interest for Nifty seen at the 23,000 and 22,700 strikes, while the notable Put Open Interest was at the 22,000 strike. For Bank Nifty, the prominent Call Open Interest was seen at the 49,000 strike, whereas notable Put Open Interest at the 48,000 strike.” Put writers increased activity in the last weekly expiry as OI levels for both Call and Put strikes were almost equal. It’s indicating Nifty may consolidate within the broader range.

“Last week, Nifty traded in a narrow range, ending with a slight loss of over 0.5 per cent, while Bank Nifty dropped nearly one per cent. Nifty faced pressure due to concern about US economic growth, closing with a weekly loss of approximately 4.5 per cent. Healthcare was the only sector to gain, while most sectors faced pressure. Small-cap, mid-cap and media stocks were the major losers,” remarked Bisht.

For the truncated week (no trading on Fri for Holi) ended March 13, 2025, BSE Sensex closed at 73,828.91 points, a net fall of 503.67 points or 0.67 per cent, from the previous week’s (March 7) closing of 74,332.58 points. NSE Nifty too moved down by 155.30 points or 0.68 per cent to 22,397.20 points from 22,552.50 points a week ago.

Bisht forecasts: “Technically, Nifty is forming lower lows and lower highs on the daily chart, indicating market weakness. Traders should view any upside move as a selling opportunity. In the upcoming session, Nifty is likely to face resistance at 22,800, with 22,000 acting as support.”

India VIX fell 2.99 per cent to 13.28 level. “Implied Volatility for Nifty’s Call options settled at 13.09 per cent, while Put options conclude at 14.78 per cent. The India VIX, a key market volatility indicator, closed the week at 13.69 per cent. The Put-Call Ratio of Open Interest for the week was 0.93,” added Bisht.

OI in Nifty futures remains elevated and it’s pointing to the same bias not changed during the last week. FIIs also not covered much of their shorts and continue to hold a net short position of 1.80 lakh contracts in index futures. Analysts expect 22,800 to be a key resistance level acting as a pain point for short covering, according to ICICIdirect.com. Hence, the market may trade around the 22,400 level.

Bank Nifty

Bank Nifty NSE’s banking index closed the week at 48,060.40 points, a fall of 437.10 or 0.90 per cent from the previous week’s closing of 48,497.50 points.