Market may turn volatile ahead of F&O expiry

High volatility is expected in a truncated trading week as traders roll over positions in futures & options (F&O) segment from the near-month February 2012 series to March 2012 series. The near-month February 2012 F&O contracts expire on Thursday, 23 February 2012. The stock market remains closed on Monday, 20 February 2012, on account of Mahashivratri.

Ranbaxy Laboratories and ABB unveil Q4 December 2011 results on Thursday, 23 February 2012.

The Empowered Group of Ministers headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is reportedly likely to meet on Friday, 24 February 2012, to consider changes in the natural gas allocation policy. The EGoM meeting, the first in more than 18 months, would consider changes in gas allocation in view of a sharp drop in output from Reliance Industries' eastern offshore KG-D6 block.



The initial public offer (IPO) of Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), India's biggest commodity exchange by turnover, opens for bidding on Wednesday, 22 February 2012. The IPO closes on Friday, 24 February 2012. The company has set Rs 860-1032 a share price band for the IPO.

Euro-zone finance ministers will reportedly take a final decision on the second bailout package for Greece at their meeting in Brussels on Monday 20 February 2012.

Investors will closely watch developments in oil rich Iran. Aftershocks of the bomb explosions in New Delhi and Bangkok had barely subsided on Wednesday, 15 February 2012 when Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dropped another bombshell by showcasing the country's advancements in nuclear technology -- a move seen as Tehran's determination to precipitate a confrontation with the West. Iran's claim that it has achieved major advances in its programme to master production of nuclear fuel is being seen as a defiant move in response to increasingly tough Western sanctions over its controversial nuclear programme