MUMBAI, May 2 Reuters Investors do not expect India39;s national elections to spark major volatility in the country39;s stock market, unlike prior occasions, based on the low cost of insuring against a slide if Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not win a third straight term.

The Nifty 50, India39;s main equity gauge, is trading at recordhigh levels amid surveys predicting Modi39;s Bharatiya Janata Party BJP will emerge victorious in the elections that started on April 19 and runs through June 4, when results are due.

A month before that, the implied volatility of a put option with a strike price that is 10 below the current level of the Nifty 50 Index is at 1820 on the National Stock Exchange.

At this time in 2019, the implied volatility was 2830, suggesting an investor had to pay much more to protect against an unexpected outcome a BJP loss that year.

Implied volatility is a key variable in options pricing. A lower number indicates investors are relatively more confident about the outcome of an event.

I think there39;s a high level of confidence that there will be stability in the Prime Minister39;s office post the results declaration, said Vikas Pershad, Asian equities portfolio manager at MG Investments.

The depressed volatility … to an extent, reflects complacency about the results. This time, it39;s the least event risk that we have felt in 20 years.

MG manages nearly 400 billion in assets, per its website.

While opinion polls predict a BJP victory,…