F&O Manual: Traders neutral in a listless market, MCX and Ipca Labs under pressure

MCX which continued to be plagued with its software problem eating profits also saw heavy bear pressure.

The Nifty was trading flat, hovering around 17,750 on April 26, with bank and metal stocks seeing profit booking after buying in previous sessions. At 11 am, the benchmark index was down 0.04 percent at 17,761.

The options data shows 17,750 remains the battle zone for the bulls and the bears. Traders seem to have taken a neutral stance at this strike indicates that they don’t see the market moving much in either direction.

The bars reflect changes in open interest (OI) during the day. The red show call option OI and the green put option OI.

The maximum call writing was seen at 17,800 and maximum put writing at 177,00, which suggests the trading range for the day, traders said.

“Volatility will continue to be the hallmark for the next two trading days, given the expiry of April futures & options contracts on Thursday,” said Prashanth Tapse, Senior VP (Research), Mehta Equities.

Caution would also prevail as investors await the US Fed's meeting on May 3. The sentiment has also been dented after FII selling spree of the past seven sessions in which they sold shares worth Rs 5,100 crore, he said.

"Technically speaking, Nifty is likely to struggle as long as 17,863 is a the ceiling,” Tapse said.

Gujarat Narmada Fertilisers saw a heavy long buildup following some changes in policy for Gujarat-based PSUs. Chambal Fertiliser, Indus Towers and Voltas, too, were getting attention from the bulls.

Ipca Labs continued to bleed, which led to even more bears accumulating their positions. MCX, which continued to be plagued with its software problem eating into profits, was also under pressure.

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