I. India accounts for a very large portion of all equity option contracts traded globally thus exhibiting a great boom.

II. India’s stock market has grown rapidly in the recent past even overtaking Hong Kong’s at some point of time.

III. There is no regulatory body either to warn the small investors about the risks of options trading or to act on unregistered financial advisors in this regard.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

(a) I and II only

(b) II and III only

(c) I and III only

(d) I, II and III

Ans-a

Explanation

Equity options trading in India has cooled this year after exponential growth since the pandemic. Fees from options traded on the NSE grew just 2% this year through April, sharply lower than the 92% growth in the same period last year, according to exchange data. 

The slowdown was triggered by Sebi, which imposed several restrictions on trading options including higher minimum investment limits and an increase in lot sizes since November to protect retail traders — 90% of whom lost money trading options.

Hence, statement 1 is correct & statement 3 is incorrect

In mid-September 2024 India had market cap 17 per cent higher than Hong Kong’s. Now, Hong Kong’s market cap exceeds India’s .

Hence statement 2 is correct

Read: Previous Year UPSC Economy Questions (PYQs) With Explanation 2025