FIIs cautious ahead of Budget, turn cumulative net bearish

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have turned cumulative net bearish on index futures – Nifty and Bank Nifty – just ahead of Saturday’s Union Budget, indicating that they are entering into the event on a cautious note. On January 29, they were net short index futures by 48,562 contracts, the highest since November 25, when they were net short 43,327 contracts.The shorting began since January 22, around two months after they remained net neutral by and large. 73753435 “The reading clearly hints at a cautious attitude and that they might not wish to be buyers at current, high levels of the indices,” said Rohit Srivastava, founder, IndiaCharts. He added that there have been several occasions when FIIs are net long cash and index futures, signifying strong bullish momentum.“Their having turned net short index futures cumulatively suggests a cautious tone,” agreed Rajesh Palviya, technical head at Axis Securities.On stock futures, they were cumulative net long 4.19 lakh contracts on January 29. In the fiscal year to date (FY20) they were buyers of shares worth Rs 67,908 crore, when the Nifty has risen 4 per cent to 12,129.5. In the month through January 29, they were purchasers of equities worth Rs 12,939 crore, NSDL data show.

from Economic Times https://ift.tt/3aMyJL0