FPIs withdraw Rs 34,843 crore from Indian equities in October
Foreign investors turned into net buyers during the final week of October despite heavy monthly outflows.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) pulled Rs 34,843 crore out of Indian equities in October, according to reports from Daily Excelsior, Business Standard and The Hindu. This marked the second straight month of significant outflows, driven by worries regarding high crude oil costs, international interest rates and the outlook for corporate earnings.
Data from the Central Depository Services Ltd (CDSL) shows that FPIs had previously withdrawn Rs 35,861 crore in September. Earlier in the year, investors had put Rs 20,200 crore into the market in July and Rs 29,631 crore in August.
Despite the monthly total, foreign investors became net buyers during the week of October 26 to October 30, injecting approximately Rs 6,300 crore. This contrasted with the nearly Rs 2,700 crore net outflow recorded in the week ending October 23.
Anand K Rathi, co-founder of MIRA Money, said that significant selling in October reflected anxieties about global interest rates, crude oil prices and earnings prospects. He noted that high crude prices could impact corporate margins and inflation in India.
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments, suggested that the US Federal Reserve's decision to maintain interest rates and attractive valuations in large-cap stocks might have improved sentiment. He added that FPIs were selectively buying pharmaceutical, healthcare and certain digital platform stocks.
Pabitro Mukherjee, Deputy Vice President-Research at Bajaj Broking, said the shift in flows was encouraging, though global event risks and crude prices could limit momentum.