After a phase of sustained outflows earlier this month, foreign investors have made a strong comeback to Indian equity markets, injecting nearly Rs 8,500 crore last week. The inflows reflect improved investor sentiment driven by India’s resilient domestic economy and relative insulation from global trade disruptions.
FPIs pump in Rs 8,472 crore in a holiday-truncated week
During the week ending April 18, Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) invested a net Rs 8,472 crore into equities. The activity included a withdrawal of Rs 2,352 crore on April 15, followed by significant inflows of Rs 10,824 crore over the next two days, according to depository data. The week was shortened with stock markets closed on Monday for Ambedkar Jayanti and Friday for Good Friday.
Turnaround after heavy outflows
Despite this positive momentum, April has still seen FPIs pull out Rs 23,103 crore so far, taking the total outflow to Rs 1.4 lakh crore since January 2025.
The start of the month was marked by aggressive selling, largely due to global uncertainties around US tariff policy changes.
Factors behind the rebound
Experts believe two key factors contributed to this turnaround.
Firstly, a decline in the US Dollar Index to around 100 and expectations of further weakness have made emerging markets like India more attractive.
Secondly, while both the US and China are expected to post subdued economic growth this year, India’s economy is forecast to grow at 6% in FY26, offering a promising outlook even amid a challenging global environment.
Focus shifts to domestic consumption
VK Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services, noted that the market’s focus — including FPIs — is likely to stay on domestic consumption-led sectors such as financial services, telecom, aviation, cement, select auto stocks, and healthcare.
(With PTI inputs)