August saw the lowest average daily turnover in India’s equity derivatives market in over a year, with new trading rules contributing to a sharp decline in futures and options activity across major exchanges, as activity begins to show signs of stabilisation.
Average daily turnover in India’s equity derivatives market fell to a 14-month low of ₹346.9 trillion in August, according to exchange data compiled by Business Standard, as new trading rules continued to damp activity in futures and options. The monthly drop of 22% from July was the steepest since December 2024, when tighter derivatives curbs also hit volumes.
Analysts have linked the slide to the closing auction session, or CAS, which took effect on August 3. The changes appear to have weighed more heavily on derivatives than on the broader market, with the slowdown most visible in options and futures trading. The last time turnover fell by a similar margin was after exchanges moved to stricter derivatives norms aimed at curbing speculation and sharp swings.
The impact was uneven across exchanges. NSE’s F&O average daily turnover fell to ₹193.3 trillion in August from ₹214.3 trillion in July, while BSE’s dropped more sharply to ₹153.6 trillion from ₹232.2 trillion, Business Standard reported. By contrast, cash trading held broadly steady: NSE’s average daily cash turnover was ₹1.19 trillion, little changed from July, while BSE’s cash turnover edged higher to ₹10,591 crore.
There are signs, however, that activity is beginning to stabilise. An analyst quoted by Business Standard said BSE volumes were recovering after the initial impact of CAS, noting that turnover in the first two days of September was 13% to 15% higher than in the first two days of July and August. The same analyst said BSE’s premium volume on Tuesday, September 1, reached ₹117.5 billion, its strongest Tuesday in 13 weeks.
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