LTF Options — Where Positioning Sits Today

Where LTF open interest sits

The heaviest call open interest is at the 330 strike, holding 32,19,750 contracts — 18.9% of all LTF call open interest on the board, 6.88% above the spot of 309. Call open interest concentrated above price is commonly read as resistance, on the reasoning that writers there are defending the level. It is a crowding observation, not a rule — the level holds until that open interest unwinds.

On the put side the weight is at 315 with 30,78,000 contracts, 17.8% of LTF put open interest, 2.02% above spot. That strike is in the money, so it is not acting as support — price is already beneath it. Heavy in-the-money put open interest more often reflects protection bought before the move than a level being defended now.

New to this? Read the Open Interest guide — how to read it, with worked examples.

What LTF's PCR is saying

LTF is carrying 1,73,40,750 contracts of put open interest against 1,70,46,000 of call, a put-call ratio of 1.02 — mildly put-heavy positioning. PCR has no universally good value; it is read against its own recent range, and the direction it is moving carries more than the level.

It opened the session at 1.02 and has held to 1.02 — a move of 0.00. That is effectively flat: positioning has not changed sides today.

New to this? Read the PCR guide — how to read it, with worked examples.

LTF against its max pain

Max pain for LTF computes to 315, with spot at 309 — 2.02% below it. That strike is where the total value of all open contracts expiring would be lowest. It is arithmetic on the current open interest distribution, not a forecast, and the distribution keeps changing.

The curve is defined around it: the nearest strike either side costs writers 13.6% more than 315. A trough that distinct is a stronger reference than a flat basin, though it still describes positioning rather than predicting settlement.

There are 21 sessions to expiry. This far out the figure moves as positions roll, and it is least informative early in a series — worth watching for direction of travel rather than as a target.

New to this? Read the Max Pain guide — how to read it, with worked examples.

What changed in LTF today

LTF is not carrying enough open interest this session for a meaningful intraday flow read. The table above is the full picture the exchange feed gives for this underlying — on a thin book, a single trade can move a strike to the top of the list, so no level is called out here.

New to this? Read the OI Change guide — how to read it, with worked examples.

The move priced into LTF

The at-the-money straddle on LTF costs 16.25 — 7.80 for the call and 8.45 for the put at the 310 strike. That sum is what the market charges to be covered in either direction, which makes it the move being priced in: about 5.26% of spot, or roughly 294 to 326 by expiry on a breakeven basis.

The straddle has moved 0.0% since the open. That is close to flat, so today's decay and any volatility move have roughly offset.

Implied volatility at the money is 27.1% on the call and 27.7% on the put. The put carries 0.5 points more, the usual shape when downside protection is bid up relative to upside.

New to this? Read the ATM Premium guide — how to read it, with worked examples.