Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) stacked up shares from the financial sector in the second half of March 2025, according to data from the National Securities Depository (NSDL).
FPIs accumulated Indian equities worth Rs 17,585 crore from the financial sector in the second fortnight of March 2025. This amount accounts for more than half of the total inflows during the period
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) stacked up shares from the financial sector in the second half of March 2025, according to data from the National Securities Depository (NSDL).
FPIs infused Rs 17,585 crore in the financial sector stocks, the highest fortnightly inflow into the sector in the previous 15 months. This amount also accounts for more than half of the total Rs 31,877 crore worth of inflows during the period.
Telecom, healthcare, and power stocks saw inflows of Rs 3,413 crore, Rs 2,138 crore, and Rs 1,627 crore, respectively. Capital goods, automobile, and metals and mining sectors saw an inflow of Rs 1,613 crore, Rs 776 crore, and Rs 722 crore, respectively.
On the other hand, the highest FPI outflow was seen in the oil, gas and consumable fuels sector at Rs 2,449 crore. It was followed by the IT, consumer services, and FMCG sectors, which saw outflows of Rs 1,517 crore, Rs 1,158 crore, and Rs 487 crore, respectively.
Construction materials and textiles, too saw minor outflows of Rs 132 crore and Rs 53 crore, respectively.
Despite the positive inflows in March 2025, the overall transaction in the previous fiscal year, FY25, remained in the negative, seeing a net outflow of Rs 1,27,041 crore. In the current financial year (FY26), till April 4, 2025, FPIs took out a total Rs 10,355 crore worth of equity shares.
VK Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said the trend of FPIs turning buyers in March reversed in early April 2025, with FPIs becoming sellers once again.
This shift came after US President Trump announced reciprocal tariffs on April 2, 2025, which were steeper than expected. The new tariffs, including a 10 per cent base tariff on all imports and a 25 per cent tariff on automobile imports, raised concerns about rising inflation in the US and the potential for stagflation.
This triggered significant selling in the US markets, where both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq lost over 10 per cent in just two days, he said.
China’s quick retaliation to the US tariffs added to the worries, with the possibility of a full-blown trade war negatively impacting global trade and economic growth. Despite the steep decline in the dollar index to 102, which could be favorable for capital flows to emerging markets like India, FPIs are expected to adopt a wait-and-watch approach before returning as buyers, Vijayakumar added.