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Following markets regulator Sebi's order to increase the lot size to at least Rs 15 lakh, the National Stock Exchange (NSE) has increased the lot size for all its five index derivative contracts — Nifty, Nifty Bank, Nifty Financial Services, Nifty Midcap Select and Nifty Next50.The measure shall be effective for all new index derivatives contracts (including weekly, monthly, quarterly and half-yearly) introduced from November 20, 2024, onwards, NSE said in a circular.Nifty50's lot size has been increased from 25 contracts to 75, a 3x jump. Nifty Bank lot size has been doubled to 30 from 15 at present.Nifty Financial Services, also known as Fin Nifty, will see the lot size going up from 25 to 65. Nifty Midcap Select's lot size increases from 50 to 120.Nifty Next 50 lot size will increase from 10 to 25."The existing weekly and monthly expiry contracts will continue with the existing lot size till its respective expiry date. In case of quarterly and half yearly existing expiry contracts, the same shall be transitioned to the new lot size on December 24, 2024, end of the day for Bank Nifty and December 26, 2024, end of the day for Nifty," NSE said.Earlier this month, Sebi had announced a 6-step framework to deal with the problem of households losing money in the high risk-high-reward game of F&O.Under the rules, which will come into effect in a graded manner beginning from November 20, Sebi has increased the minimum contract size for index futures and options from Rs 5-10 lakh currently to Rs 15 lakh at the time of its introduction in the market.Further, the lot size shall be fixed in such a manner that the contract value of the derivative on the day of review is within Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh, the regulator said."Given the inherent leverage and higher risk in derivatives, this recalibration in minimum contract size, in tune with the growth of the market, would ensure that an inbuilt suitability and appropriateness criteria for participants is maintained as intended," Sebi had said.

The initial public offering (IPO) of Waaree Energies will open for subscription on Monday and close on October 23. Through the public offer, the company plans to raise nearly Rs 4,321 crore. Here are 10 things to know about the KRN Heat Exchanger IPO before subscribing to the issue.1) What is the business overview of Waaree Energies?The company is a manufacturer of solar PV modules in India with an aggregate installed capacity of 12 GW and utilised capacity of 43.37%, for the year ended March 31, 2024. It had an aggregate installed capacity of 12 GW and utilised capacity of 45.01%, as of June 2024.2) What is the industry overview of Waaree Energies?The Indian commercial and industrial solar sector added approximately 10GW over Fiscal 2019 and 2023, with total installed capacity as of December 2023 at approximately 25 GW. The commercial and industrial segment accounts for 70%-80% of the country’s rooftop solar installations and is making headway in the utility-scale solar space as well through open access and group captive routes.3) What is the current GMP of Waaree Energies?According to market analysts, the current GMP of Waaree Energies is Rs 1,340, indicating a premium of 89% to the issue.4) What is the size of Waaree Energies IPO?The issue includes a fresh equity sale worth Rs 3,600 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 721 crore.5) What is the price band for Waaree Energies IPO?The company has fixed a price band of Rs 1,427-1,503 per share, where investors can bid for 9 shares in one lot.6) What is the structure of Waaree Energies IPO?About 50% of the public offer is reserved for qualified institutional buyers, 35% for retail investors and the remaining 15% for non-institutional investors.7) How is the financial performance of Waaree Energies?For FY24, the company's revenue from operations jumped 69% year-on-year to Rs 11,398 crore, while profit after tax more than doubled to Rs 1,274 crore.8) What are the objects of Waaree Energies IPO?The company proposes to use the funds raised from the IPO for key initiatives, including establishing a 6 gigawatt (GW) manufacturing facility for ingots, wafers, solar cells, and PV modules in Odisha, as well as supporting general corporate purposes.9) Who are the book-running lead managers for Waaree Energies IPO?Axis Capital, IIFL Securities, Jefferies India, Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India), SBI Capital Markets, Intensive Fiscal Services and ITI Capital are the book-running lead managers to the issue.10) When is the share allotment and listing date of Waaree Energies IPO?The share allotment for the IPO will likely be finalised on October 24 and the company is anticipated to list on stock exchanges on October 28.

Sustained selling pressure from foreign investors, muted second quarter earnings expectations, and elevated valuations acted as headwinds for the market during the week as benchmark indices ended in the red.But, even in a muted market, 42 smallcap stocks have delivered double-digit weekly returns with five of them offering over 25% returns.Nalwa Sons Investment was the top gainer from the smallcap pack with nearly 43% returns, followed by Precision Camshaft (29%), Motilal Oswal (27%), and Renaissance Global (26.4%).About four stocks, including Kalyani Investment, Info Tech Transform, Filatex Fashions, Sanghvi Motors have offered returns between 20-25% during the week.In the midcap segment, none of the stocks gained in double digits, but HPCL and Mphasis rallied the most. While the former jumped about 9%, the latter's stock increased nearly 8%.From the Sensex pack, ICICI Bank topped the charts with 3% returns, followed by L&T at 2.6% and Tech Mahindra at 2.6%.During the start of the week, a slew of postive macro news, such as stronger-than-expected PMI figures, sequential growth in auto sales, and robust expansion in bank credit, kept the markets bouyant.What should investors do?Geopolitical tensions and uncertainty ahead of the US presidential election paved the way for haven asset gold to climb a new record high during the week.Analysts said they expect the investment strategies favouring China over India may tactically support for the short term."However, the long-term outlook for the domestic market remains robust with stability in growth and a pickup in capex. We expect the market to be range-bound in the short term with a mixed bias, while investors should turn more sector- and stock-specific in such a time," said Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit Financial Services.Analysts further said participants should not overanalyse the single-day rebound and instead wait for a decisive close above 25,150 in Nifty for any signs of a sustained recovery."After the strong recovery in the banking sector, the market's reaction to major banks like HDFC Bank and Kotak Bank in early trade on Monday will likely set the tone for the session. Meanwhile, we maintain a cautious outlook on the markets and advise keeping a close watch on position sizes amidst the ongoing choppiness," said Ajit Mishra – SVP, Research, Religare Broking.Technically, a reasonable positive candle was formed on the daily chart with a minor lower shadow, indicating a short-term reversal in the market on the upside post-downward correction.Immediate support is at 24,500 and the next overhead resistance is placed around 24,950-25,000 levels, said Nagaraj Shetti of HDFC Securities.(With data inputs from Ritesh Presswala)(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)