But two senior envoys who attended said there was no direct response from the ministers gathered in Brussels when Blinken said: “We must push back on China together and show strength in unity.”

Their reticence is partly due to an unwillingness to commit to anything until Washington spells out more fully its China policy under President Joe Biden.

But the ministers were also cautious because the EU is looking for a strategic balance in relations with Beijing and Washington that ensures the bloc is not so closely allied with one of the world’s two big powers that it alienates the other.

The EU also hopes to have enough independence from Washington and Beijing to be able on its own to deepen ties with countries in the Indo-Pacific region such as India, Japan and Australia, EU officials said.

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In a new departure for the EU, they said, the bloc hopes to agree a plan next month that involves a larger and more assertive security presence in the Indo-Pacific, and more development aid, trade and diplomacy.
“We are charting a third way between Washington and Beijing,” an EU envoy in Asia said.Another EU official in Asia expressed concern that the United States had “a hawkish agenda against China, which is not our agenda”.

‘EUROPE ROADSHOW’
Last month’s videoconference was part of an attempt under Biden to rebuild alliances neglected by former U.S. President Donald Trump, who had an antagonistic relationship with both the EU and China.

The White House has embarked on a “Europe roadshow”, a senior U.S. official said, and is in daily contact with European governments about China’s rising power, in “a sustained effort for … a high degree of coordination and cooperation in a number of areas.”

In a sign that the U.S. push on China is having an impact, Germany plans to send a frigate in August to Asia and across the South China Sea, where Beijing has military outposts on artificial islands, senior government officials told Reuters.

The EU is also set to sanction four Chinese officials and one entity – with travel bans and asset freezes – on March 22 over human rights abuses in China’s Uighur Muslim minority, diplomats said.

In a further sign, when Chinese President Xi Jinping chaired a video summit with central and eastern European countries last month, six EU member states – Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania and Slovenia – sent ministers rather than heads of state.

But there is still distrust in Brussels of Washington’s approach to China, even if attitudes in Europe have hardened against China over Beijing’s crackdown in Hong Kong, treatment of Uighur Muslims and the COVID-19 pandemic, first identified in China.

The United States says China is an authoritarian country that has embarked on a military modernisation that threatens the West, and has sought to weaken telecommunications equipment maker Huawei, which it sees as a national security threat.

The U.S.-led NATO military alliance is also beginning to focus on China, but Biden’s administration is still reviewing policy.

“We ask what their China strategy is and they say they still don’t have one,” the EU official in Asia said.

French President Emmanuel Macron highlighted concerns in some EU states last month by saying that uniting against China would create “the highest possible” potential for conflict.

‘NO ALTERNATIVE’
But the EU is hungry for new trade and sees the Indo-Pacific as offering huge potential.

The EU has a trade deal with Japan and is negotiating one with Australia. Diplomats say countries in the Indo-Pacific want the EU to be more active in the region to keep trade free and open, and to ensure they are not left facing a straight choice between Beijing and Washington.

France committed to closer ties with allies such as Australia and India with an Indo-Pacific strategy in 2018, followed by the Netherlands, which also has its own strategy, and Germany’s looser set of “guidelines”.

The EU strategy, if agreed, could involve putting more EU military experts in EU diplomatic missions in Asia, training coast guards and sending more EU military personnel to serve on Australian ships patrolling in the Indian Ocean, diplomats said.

It is unclear how much Germany, which has close business ties to China, will commit to any new strategy. German government officials say the EU cannot afford to alienate Beijing despite labelling China a “systemic rival” in 2019.

But French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian will travel to India in April to develop the EU’s Indo-Pacific strategy, and the EU aims to hold a summit with India this year.

France, which has 1.8 million citizens in Pacific overseas territories, has about 4,000 troops in the region, plus navy ships and patrol boats.

“The Indo-Pacific is the cornerstone of Europe’s geopolitical path,” said a French diplomat. “There’s no alternative.”

BSE’s average daily premium turnover value (ADPTV) stood at Rs 21,300 crore, down 6.6% week-on-week, compared with a 4.6% decline for the industry. The figure was above Nuvama’s remaining FY27 ADPTV estimate of Rs 18,600 crore.

Average daily contracts traded on BSE fell 8.5% week-on-week to 105 million, in line with the industry’s decline. The exchange recorded 98 million contracts in August 2026 and 150 million in July 2026.

Premium per contract rose 2.1% week-on-week to Rs 2,028, compared with Rs 1,897 in August and Rs 1,688 in July.

BSE’s ADPTV market share stood at 34.3%, down 70.8 basis points week-on-week.

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For FY27 to date, BSE’s ADPTV is around Rs 26,200 crore, while its ADPTV market share is around 35.2%. Its premium-to-notional turnover ratio is around 12.4 basis points, compared with 17.2 basis points for the industry.
Separately, the Closing Auction Session (CAS) remains under discussion, with Sebi chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey saying the mechanism is “here to stay” while acknowledging that liquidity could remain a concern during the initial stages of implementation.ALSO READ: CAS here to stay, liquidity will pick up, says Sebi Chief

Pandey said several global jurisdictions, including the US, Japan and Hong Kong, experienced lower liquidity when CAS was initially introduced, with liquidity improving over time.

“The issue is can we just keep on waiting or we can have some temporary solutions to the issue,” Pandey said, referring to the liquidity concern.

Sebi is expected to issue a consultation paper proposing changes to the CAS framework.

The regulator introduced CAS on August 3, after which market participants raised concerns over the impact of the new mechanism on liquidity and settlement prices.

Pandey, however, said several market participants had praised the implementation, particularly during events such as MSCI rebalancing.

“We have had several participants who have absolutely praised that implementation of CAS—that MSCI rebalancing and all have gone off very well. Technically the whole thing went off well,” he said.

Pandey also said a segment of the market was impacted by the way the settlement price was determined under the new mechanism.

This article has been written by Kumar Gaurav, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Gaurav and his/her ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment.

Our Exploration Jurisdiction Power Score (EJPS) indicates where exploration capital is flowing and where it is pulling back with a single, comparable score across the top 20 mining jurisdictions. Updated quarterly, the index combines three key indicators — drilling activity, initial resource announcements

In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin was up 0.1% and Ethereum was up 2.1% to trade at $2,521 mark. Among the major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Solana, Tron, Dogecoin rallied upto 2% whereas Hyperliquid and Cardano were down respectively.

Also Read | Explained: Want to build a corpus with a Rs 15,000 monthly SIP? Know Rule 15*15*30The global crypto market capitalisation was up 0.4% to $2.73 trillion, according to Coingecko.

Nischal Shetty, Founder, WazirX said Ethereum is holding relatively firm near $2,450, market sentiment remains in Greed, and Bitcoin continues to trade above its 200-week moving average.

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“Markets are turning more cautious as sticky inflation gives the Fed less room to ease and has pushed expectations for a rate hike next week significantly higher.”
Technically, Bitcoin is at an important level. $76K is the immediate support, with $75.5K the level bulls really need to defend. Ethereum is holding the $2,400–$2,425 support band, while $2,500–$2,525 remains the immediate resistance, Shetty further said.Over the last week, Bitcoin was down 2.9% and Ethereum was up 2.8%. Among the major altcoins, BNB and Tron were up 1.2% and 2.5% respectively whereas XRP, Solana, Hyperliquid, Dogecoin, and Cardano corrected upto 6.4%.

Riya Sehgal, Research Analyst, Delta Exchange said crypto markets saw sharp two-way volatility after the latest U.S. CPI release, with Bitcoin briefly pushing toward $79K–$80K before giving back most of the move.

“Roughly $750 million in leveraged crypto positions were liquidated over 24 hours, with both shorts and longs caught during the rapid reversal. The initial upside squeeze forced bearish positions out, while the failed breakout later pressured late buyers.”

Also Read | SIF AUM rises 34% to Rs 31,175 crore in August; inflows jump 56% MoM: Report

The next major catalyst is the September 15–16 FOMC meeting, where policy guidance and the rate outlook are likely to drive the next major move, Sehgal further said.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

The regulator has proposed two options for determining expiry-day settlement prices for index and stock derivatives, changes to the timing of the continuous trading session (CTS), CAS and derivatives trading, and additional measures aimed at improving the functioning of the auction.

SEBI has invited public comments on seven proposals by October 3, 2026.

Two options for expiry-day settlement

SEBI has proposed two alternatives for determining the settlement price of index and stock derivatives on expiry days.

Option 1: Blended VWAP

Under the first option, the settlement price would be based on trades executed during the last 30 minutes of CTS and the 10-minute CAS.

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SEBI has termed this the “Blended VWAP”.
For index derivatives, the relative contribution of CTS and CAS would be determined based on the actual traded value during the respective periods. There would be no separate or predetermined weight assigned to either CTS or CAS.For stock derivatives, the blended price would be determined on the basis of VWAP across exchanges, considering the actual traded value during the last 30 minutes of CTS and the 10 minutes of CAS.

SEBI has described this as the proposed eventual settlement methodology.

Option 2: CTS VWAP

Under the second option, the expiry-day settlement price for both index and single-stock derivatives would be based only on trades executed during the last 30 minutes of CTS.

Transactions executed during CAS would not form part of the settlement calculation during the interim period.

SEBI has described this as an interim methodology, providing continuity with the pre-CAS framework.

After at least one year, the regulator proposes to consider transitioning to the Blended VWAP methodology. The transition would not be automatic and would depend on experience with CAS, including liquidity and participation, familiarity of market participants with the auction mechanism and how CAS functions under different market conditions.

SEBI is seeking comments on whether Option 1 should be the preferred methodology, or whether Option 2 should be used before ultimately transitioning to Option 1.

IEP is not an executed price

SEBI has also sought to clarify the difference between the Indicative Equilibrium Price (IEP) displayed during CAS and an actual traded price.

During CTS, compatible buy and sell orders are matched and a transaction is executed at the corresponding price.

During CAS, buy and sell orders are accumulated in the auction book. Based on orders received up to a particular point, the exchange calculates the price at which the maximum possible quantity could currently be executed.

As orders are entered, modified or cancelled, the IEP may change.

SEBI said the IEP is therefore “indicative and evolving during CAS and does not denote a price at which transactions have taken place.”

The final CAS price is the price at which transactions are executed pursuant to the auction.

For example, an IEP of ₹100 shortly after the start of CAS means that, based on the orders available at that point, ₹100 is the price at which the maximum possible quantity could currently be executed. If more orders enter the book or existing orders are modified or cancelled, the IEP may change.

Therefore, a movement in the IEP from ₹100 to ₹103 does not by itself mean that the security’s traded price has moved to ₹103. It reflects the ongoing price discovery process and the price at which a transaction could execute if the auction ended at that point.

Why SEBI wants to stop IEP-derived index values during CAS

SEBI has also proposed stopping the dissemination of the Indicative Index Value (IIV) derived from IEPs during CAS, while continuing to provide security-level IEPs.

The regulator said an index itself is not subject to an auction. Its indicative value during CAS is derived from the continuously evolving IEPs of its constituent securities.

The final index value is established only after the auction concludes and the final prices of the relevant constituent securities are determined.

SEBI said movement in the IEP-derived IIV during CAS should therefore not be interpreted as the index having actually reached that level, since no actual transactions have taken place at that index value.

For example, if the pre-CAS index value is 50,000 and the IIV during CAS is displayed at 48,500 points, this does not mean that the index has actually traded or reached 48,500 points.

Such values, SEBI said, “may be misconstrued by market participants as actual levels reached by the index.”

The regulator has therefore proposed that security-level IEPs continue to be disseminated while the IEP-derived IIV is not disseminated during CAS.

Two options for market timings

The regulator has also proposed two alternatives for the timing of CTS, CAS and derivatives trading.

Option A: CAS after 3:30 pm

Under Option A, CTS for all stocks would continue until 3:30 pm.

After a transition period of about one minute, CAS for CAS stocks would run from 3:31 pm to 3:40 pm.

Derivatives trading would continue until 3:45 pm, providing a five-minute window after CAS concludes.

SEBI said this option would provide greater continuity between CTS and CAS, with a longer CTS period.

Option B: CAS after 3:15 pm

Under Option B, CTS for CAS stocks would continue until 3:15 pm, while non-CAS stocks would continue to trade until 3:30 pm.

CAS would run from 3:15 pm to 3:25 pm, including a transition period of about one minute.

Derivatives trading would continue until 3:30 pm, giving participants five minutes after CAS concludes.

SEBI said this option would retain the existing CTS duration for CAS stocks and align the close of derivatives markets with 3:30 pm.

Transition period to be cut to one minute

Under the current CAS framework, exchanges were given a five-minute transition period between CTS and CAS.

SEBI has proposed reducing this to up to one minute.

The regulator said this would reduce the substantive transition period while retaining sufficient time for exchanges to complete the operational processes required to commence CAS.

It would also provide greater continuity between continuous trading and auction-based price discovery, while increasing the CTS period by about four minutes.

F&O window after CAS to be cut to five minutes

Under the existing framework, derivatives trading continues for 10 minutes after CAS.

SEBI has proposed reducing this post-CAS derivatives trading window to five minutes.

The regulator noted that the existing additional window allows participants to achieve intended end-of-day exposures and enables arbitrageurs to square off unmatched positions.

For single-stock derivatives, the additional period also allows participants to take offsetting positions to manage physical delivery obligations.

However, based on feedback from market participants, SEBI said a shorter window may be sufficient once price discovery in the underlying security or index is complete.

The regulator also noted that participants may not be able to complete all desired transactions during CAS and may therefore need a window after CAS to manage their positions.

CAS price band to remain at ±3%

SEBI has proposed retaining the existing ±3% price band for CAS.

Instead of narrowing the overall band, it has proposed restrictions on cancellation of orders placed beyond ±1% of the reference price.

Under the proposal:

• Orders placed within ±1% of the reference price could continue to be cancelled during CAS.
• Orders placed at, or modified to, prices beyond ±1% and up to ±3% of the reference price could not be cancelled during CAS.
• Such orders could, however, be modified to improve the price, subject to the overall ±3% band.
• The overall CAS price band would remain at ±3%.

For a buy order, price improvement would mean increasing the bid price. For a sell order, it would mean decreasing the offer price.

SEBI said the approach is intended to preserve the flexibility of the existing ±3% band while reducing the scope for significant withdrawal of trading interest at prices materially away from the reference price.

The regulator said the proposal could also improve the stability and credibility of the auction order book while retaining flexibility for participants to improve their orders as demand and supply conditions evolve.

Iceberg orders may move into CAS

SEBI has also proposed allowing unexecuted Iceberg orders at the end of CTS to participate in CAS.

Under the existing framework, Iceberg orders placed during CTS divide the total quantity into smaller disclosed quantities, with only the applicable disclosed portion visible in the order book.

SEBI proposes that the pending quantity of an unexecuted Iceberg order at the commencement of CAS be converted into a normal limit order.

The entire unexecuted quantity would then be disclosed in the CAS order book and made available for execution under the CAS matching mechanism.

For example, if an Iceberg order has a total quantity of 10,000 shares, with 1,000 shares visible at a time, and 6,000 shares have been executed during CTS, the remaining 4,000 shares would move into CAS as a normal limit order, with the entire 4,000-share quantity disclosed.

SEBI said this would ensure that eligible trading interest remaining at the end of CTS is not excluded from closing-price discovery because of the manner in which the order was originally placed.

It would also make the quantity actually available for execution fully visible in the CAS order book.

What happens next?

SEBI has invited public comments on all seven proposals.

Comments and suggestions have to be submitted by October 3, 2026.

The proposals cover:

• Expiry-day settlement methodology — Blended VWAP or CTS VWAP;
• Market timings — Option A or Option B;
• Dissemination of IEP-derived Indicative Index Value during CAS;
• Restrictions on cancellation of orders beyond ±1% of the reference price; and
• Transition of unexecuted Iceberg quantities from CTS to CAS.

SEBI said the proposals are intended to address the functioning of CAS, align trading timings and provide greater clarity around the distinction between indicative prices, final closing prices and derivatives settlement prices.

This article has been written by Kumar Gaurav, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Gaurav and his/her ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment.

This article was written by

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