Cuts in bearish foreign F&O bets set stage for 4-5% gains

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) reduced their net bearish bets in index futures to 1.54 lakh contracts on Friday from 2.01 lakh the previous day. This resulted in foreigners' long-to-short ratio - a measure of the number of their bullish positions versus bearish - in index futures rising from 23% at the start of the month to 31% as of November 22, according Ajit Mishra, senior vice president, Research at Religare Broking.