Christmas week is likely to begin on a positive note with strong gains. Gift Nifty at 26,175 signals a gain of about 150 points at open, as foreign portfolio investors have turned buyers in the last few days. During the last three trading days FIIs were buyers in the cash market with a total buy figure of ₹3,596 crore.
Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd, said: From a flows perspective, FPIs turned selective buyers after initial selling during the first two sessions, providing marginal support even as overall participation remained cautious. The rupee also recovered in the latter part of the week after briefly touching the 91 mark against the dollar, lending some stability to domestic sentiment.
V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd, said: “As the year 2025 draws to a close, there are signs of a reversal of FII outflows witnessed this year and indications of capital inflows in 2026. As per NSDL data, the total FPI selling through stock exchanges for December up to 20th stood at ₹21,104 crore. This takes the total FII sell figure for the year 2025, up to 20th December, to a massive ₹2,30,964 crore. It is important to note that during this period FIIs bought/invested in equity for ₹73,106 crore through the primary market.”
“With India’s GDP growth improving steadily and corporate earnings growth indicating and uptrend in the coming quarters, FIIs are likely to turn net buyers in 2026,” he said.
Meanwhile, equities across Asia Pacific region are trading up in early deals on MOnday, led by Japan’s Nikkei that jumped over 2 per cent.
According to Ajit Mishra, Globally, softer US inflation supported risk appetite, while policy divergence—highlighted by the Bank of Japan’s rate hike—kept currency and cross-border fund flow dynamics in focus.
The derivatives landscape signals a growing undertone of caution.
Call writers have added fresh positions at at-the-money and nearby strikes, reinforcing overhead resistance with every upward move, said Dhupesh Dhameja, Derivatives Research Analyst, SAMCO Securities. On the other hand, put writers have trimmed some exposure and rolled positions to lower strikes, indicating expectations of prolonged consolidation rather than an immediate directional breakout, he said.
“A substantial build-up of nearly 1.41 crore call contracts at the 26,000 strike firmly establishes this level as a strong resistance zone. Conversely, the accumulation of around 1.36 crore put contracts at the 25,900 strike offers a solid support cushion. The Put-Call Ratio (PCR) has improved to 1.10 from 0.66, reflecting a marginal rise in optimistic sentiment and suggesting that buyers remain active in defending lower levels,” he added.
Factor stocks watch this week
The coming week marks the onset of the year-end festive period and will be holiday-shortened due to the Christmas break, which may keep trading volumes subdued. On the domestic front, markets will track infrastructure output data, along with updates on bank loan growth, deposit growth, and foreign exchange reserves. Currency movement and crude oil prices will also remain important variables. Globally, the performance of major markets—particularly the US—will be closely monitored for directional cues.