More Stories

Informist, Monday, Feb. 23, 2026

 

By Simran Rede

 

MUMBAI – The domestic market sentiment was slightly positive Monday after the US Supreme Court Friday ruled against the trade tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump. However, after opening gap-up by more than 100 points, the Nifty 50 index moved in a thin range of 160 points during the day's session, implying continued caution in the market.

 

"From the market perspective, the US SC decision is indeed a positive, but this is not sufficient to trigger a sustained rally in the market," V.K. Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said in a note. Analysts do not expect the market to rise substantially unless it crosses the 25800-point mark. The index is likely to face volatility at higher levels on the expiry of monthly contracts of Nifty 50 derivatives as investors are expected to sell on any rise in the market, according to analysts. 

 

As the market awaits further details on the tariffs front, or some fresh trigger to make a decisive move, traders added short positions in call contracts of Nifty 50 derivatives while also selling put contracts. This suggests range-bound movement for the index in the near term. 

 

Investors covered some short positions in in-the-money call options expiring Tuesday, helping the 50-stock index to rise 0.6% Monday. The Nifty 50 settled at 25713.00, up 141.75 points. The BSE Sensex closed at 83294.66 points, also up 0.6% or 479.95 points.

 

The India Volatility Index or India VIX, also known as the fear gauge of the market, closed 1.4% lower at 14.1675. The indicator has risen nearly 4% so far in February. "February has been highly volatile for Nifty 50, reacting to the Union Budget, India–US trade developments, US–Iran tensions, and the US tariff ruling," said Vatsal Bhuva, technical analyst at LKP Securities.

 

Technical charts still show a "lower-top falling trendline with bears dominating", indicating that investors did not build fresh long positions in the market, Bhuva said. For Tuesday, the Nifty 50 is expected to find support at 25400-25350 points. The expiry of the monthly contract is seen to be between 25600 points and 25800 points, with 25700 points likely acting as the pivot, he said. The put-call ratio is at 0.9, implying neutral sentiment in the market, he added.

 

In the options chain of Nifty 50, the maximum concentration of open interest was at the 26000 call and 25500 put expiring Tuesday. The highest addition of open interest was at the 25750 call and 25700 put option.

 

--Nifty 50 February closed at 25700.30, up 115.60 points; 12.70-point discount to the spot index

--Nifty 50 March closed at 25855.00, up 112.40 points; 142.00-point premium to the spot index

--Nifty 50 April closed at 26005.10, up 106.00 points; 292.10-point premium to the spot index

 

HDFC Bank, Reliance Industries, ICICI Bank, IDFC FIRST Bank, Infosys, Bharti Airtel, Bajaj Finance, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, Vodafone Idea, Hindustan Aeronautics, Tata Consultancy Services, Eternal, UPL, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ITC, and Hindalco Industries were the most actively traded underlying stocks Monday.  End

 

Edited by Rajeev Pai

 

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

 

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.

 

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

 

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.