Cash and carry
Cash and Carry Arbitrage Today
| Metric | Value | Read |
|---|---|---|
| Best net carry, 27 Oct expiry | 5.40% a year | DIXON, full cycle after costs |
| Best net carry, 23 Nov expiry | 5.71% a year | SUZLON, full cycle after costs |
| Best roll return | 25.94% a year | Shares already held, only the future rolled |
| Median net carry, liquid stocks | -30.27% a year | 2 of 78 liquid stocks pay after costs |
| Typical cost per cycle | 0.29% | Of the stock value, both legs, both ends |
Top cash and carry trades, 27 Oct expiry
| Stock | Lot | Lot value | Gap | Costs / lot | Net / lot | Net %/yr | Roll %/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DIXON | 50 | ₹5,58,300 | ₹39.00 (0.349%) | ₹1,619 | ₹331 | 5.40% | 25.94% |
| WIPRO | 3000 | ₹5,69,520 | ₹0.60 (0.316%) | ₹1,651 | ₹149 | 2.39% | 22.93% |
Top cash and carry trades, 23 Nov expiry
| Stock | Lot | Lot value | Gap | Costs / lot | Net / lot | Net %/yr | Roll %/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUZLON | 12700 | ₹4,73,583 | ₹0.29 (0.778%) | ₹1,384 | ₹2,299 | 5.71% | 8.37% |
| MCX | 225 | ₹6,79,275 | ₹21.50 (0.712%) | ₹1,958 | ₹2,879 | 4.99% | 7.64% |
| INDIGO | 150 | ₹6,78,750 | ₹31.80 (0.703%) | ₹1,957 | ₹2,813 | 4.88% | 7.52% |
| BANDHANBNK | 3600 | ₹5,40,000 | ₹1.05 (0.700%) | ₹1,570 | ₹2,210 | 4.82% | 7.47% |
| KOTAKBANK | 2000 | ₹8,59,300 | ₹2.95 (0.687%) | ₹2,460 | ₹3,440 | 4.71% | 7.35% |
| ICICIBANK | 700 | ₹9,69,920 | ₹9.50 (0.686%) | ₹2,769 | ₹3,881 | 4.71% | 7.35% |
| KEI | 175 | ₹6,51,700 | ₹25.10 (0.674%) | ₹1,881 | ₹2,511 | 4.54% | 7.18% |
| LICI | 1400 | ₹5,32,420 | ₹2.55 (0.671%) | ₹1,548 | ₹2,022 | 4.47% | 7.12% |
| HDFCBANK | 650 | ₹4,49,540 | ₹4.65 (0.672%) | ₹1,317 | ₹1,705 | 4.47% | 7.13% |
| SUNPHARMA | 350 | ₹6,09,700 | ₹11.40 (0.654%) | ₹1,764 | ₹2,226 | 4.30% | 6.95% |
| TMPV | 1600 | ₹4,21,120 | ₹1.70 (0.646%) | ₹1,238 | ₹1,482 | 4.14% | 6.81% |
| BHEL | 2625 | ₹10,13,119 | ₹2.45 (0.635%) | ₹2,889 | ₹3,542 | 4.12% | 6.75% |
| SBIN | 750 | ₹7,16,775 | ₹5.95 (0.623%) | ₹2,062 | ₹2,400 | 3.94% | 6.59% |
| HAL | 150 | ₹7,09,500 | ₹29.20 (0.617%) | ₹2,042 | ₹2,338 | 3.88% | 6.52% |
| UNIONBANK | 4425 | ₹7,88,093 | ₹1.09 (0.612%) | ₹2,261 | ₹2,562 | 3.83% | 6.47% |
| POLICYBZR | 350 | ₹3,54,900 | ₹6.30 (0.621%) | ₹1,053 | ₹1,152 | 3.82% | 6.49% |
| ONGC | 2250 | ₹5,07,465 | ₹1.38 (0.612%) | ₹1,478 | ₹1,627 | 3.77% | 6.43% |
| WIPRO | 3000 | ₹5,69,520 | ₹1.09 (0.574%) | ₹1,651 | ₹1,619 | 3.35% | 6.00% |
| CIPLA | 425 | ₹5,63,423 | ₹7.60 (0.573%) | ₹1,634 | ₹1,596 | 3.33% | 5.98% |
| LT | 175 | ₹6,36,983 | ₹20.50 (0.563%) | ₹1,840 | ₹1,748 | 3.23% | 5.88% |
Snapshot of Friday, 23 October 2026. Net %/yr is one full cycle; Roll %/yr keeps the shares and rolls only the future.
Cash and carry arbitrage means buying a stock in the cash market and selling the same quantity of its future at the same time. The future is usually priced above the stock, because it carries the interest cost of holding the shares until expiry. On expiry day the future settles at the stock price, so the gap sold at the start is kept whichever way the stock moves. This page ranks every NSE stock future by what that gap is worth after costs.
A worked example from the latest snapshot: DIXON trades in lots of 50 shares. Buying one lot at the ask of ₹11166.00 costs ₹5,58,300, and the 27 Oct future sells at the bid of ₹11205.00, a gap of ₹39.00 a share or ₹1,950 a lot. Charges on both legs, at entry and at expiry, come to ₹1,619, leaving ₹331 in 4 days. That is 0.06% for the period, or 5.40% a year on the stock value.
Most of the cost is delivery STT: 0.1% on both the purchase and the sale of the shares. That is why the roll column is higher. A trader who keeps the shares and only sells a new future each month pays the futures charges alone (STT of 0.05% on the sell, ₹20 an order, exchange charges, stamp duty and GST), which is how the trade is usually run.
How the figures are made: prices are the ones a trade would get, not the last traded price. The shares are priced at the best ask and the future at the best bid, from NSE order books read every 15 minutes between 9:30 AM and 3:15 PM IST. A stock is listed only when its futures spread is within 0.1%, the best bid is at least one lot deep, and both books are live. Returns are on the stock value only: the futures margin is extra cash. Charges are Zerodha's for a resident individual. This is a calculation, not advice to trade.
Read the full MarketCue scoring methodology
Source: NSE cash and stock futures order books; MarketCue cost model at Zerodha charges. .
Frequently asked questions
- What is cash and carry arbitrage?
- You buy a stock in the cash market and sell the same quantity of its future at the same time. A stock future usually trades above the stock price because it is priced with the cost of holding the shares until expiry. On expiry day the future settles at the stock price, so the gap you sold is locked in whichever way the stock moves in between.
- Is cash and carry arbitrage risk-free?
- The price gap is locked, but the trade is not free of risk. The short future is marked to market every day, so a rally needs cash on the futures leg even though the shares gain the same amount. A thin futures book can give a worse fill than the quoted gap. A dividend going ex before expiry changes the gap. And a leg left open past expiry is physically settled.
- How much does cash and carry arbitrage return in India?
- After Zerodha charges, a full cycle (buy shares, sell the future, close both on expiry day) has netted roughly 3 to 6 percent a year on the best liquid stocks. Keeping the shares and only rolling the future each month skips the delivery charges and has netted roughly 7 to 10 percent. That is close to what arbitrage mutual funds earn: it is a parking return, not a trading edge. The tables on this page show today's figures.
- What costs does a cash and carry trade pay?
- Delivery STT of 0.1% on both the buy and the sell of the shares is the biggest cost. The futures leg pays STT of 0.05% on the sell side (raised from 0.02% on 1 April 2026) and ₹20 brokerage per order. Both legs also pay exchange transaction charges, the SEBI fee, stamp duty on the buy, GST on brokerage and exchange charges, and a DP charge when the shares are sold. Together that is usually about 0.3% of the stock value per cycle.
- How much capital does a cash and carry trade need?
- At least the lot value: the futures lot size times the share price, because the stock leg has to match one futures lot. On top of that the short future blocks margin, typically 15 to 25 percent of the contract. Pledging the shares covers part of it, but at least half of the margin has to be cash, so plan for roughly the lot value plus 10 percent.
- Why is the stock future priced above the stock?
- Holding the shares until expiry ties up money that could earn interest elsewhere, so the future is priced near the stock price plus that interest for the days left. The gap shrinks every day and is zero on expiry day. When demand to buy futures is high the gap widens; when the stock is about to pay a dividend the gap narrows, because the future does not receive the dividend and the shares do.