Intraday vs Delivery Trading: What's the Difference?
In Indian equities, you can trade in two basic ways: intraday or delivery. The difference is whether you actually take ownership of the shares.
Intraday trading
In intraday, you buy and sell the same stock within a single trading day — the position is squared off before market close. You never take delivery of the shares; you're betting on the price move during the day. It typically uses leverage and carries higher risk.
Delivery trading
In delivery, you buy shares and hold them — they're credited to your demat account under the T+1 settlement cycle. You own the stock and can keep it for days, years, or indefinitely. This is how investing (as opposed to day-trading) works.
Why delivery % matters as a signal
The exchange reports what fraction of a day's traded volume was taken as delivery versus squared off intraday. A high delivery percentage suggests genuine investor buying/holding rather than speculative churn — a useful signal explored in volume vs delivery percentage.