Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded Indian equities worth ₹6,517 crore on Tuesday, August 26 — their highest single-day selling since May 20. In contrast, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) made net purchases worth ₹7,060 crore, marking their strongest buying since August 8, as per provisional exchange data.
During the session, FIIs purchased equities valued at ₹44,147 crore and sold stocks worth ₹50,663 crore. Meanwhile, DIIs bought shares worth ₹22,000 crore and offloaded ₹14,940 crore.
FIIs have pulled out a massive ₹1.16 lakh crore from Indian equities so far in 2025, signaling a strong risk-averse sentiment among global investors. The steepest sell-offs were seen in IT, FMCG, and Power sectors, while Telecom and Services continued to witness steady foreign inflows.
In terms of sectors, Information Technology (IT) faced the heaviest selling pressure, with FIIs pulling out ₹56,881 crore, making it the most offloaded sector of the year. The outflows remained steady, with February 2025 being the only month to witness positive inflows.
Close behind were Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) and Power, which recorded net FII outflows of ₹17,770 crore and ₹17,718 crore, respectively.
“FPIs have remained net sellers in the Indian stock market for the last five years, and foreign ownership of Indian stocks is at a 15-year low. FPIs have also fished out around $13 billion this year from the Indian equity market. So, FPIs’ selling is limited as they have already sold a lot in the Indian stock market. The primary reason for this FPI outflow from India is asset-liability mismatch for US investors, who dominate FPI inflow in Indian equities,” said Avinash Gorakshkar, a SEBI-registered fundamental research analyst.
Why FPIs selling is not a worry amid Trump tariffs on India?
Despite FIIs remained net sellers, market experts believe that it is not going to be worrisome factor amid ongoing Trump tariffs on India.
Anuj Gupta, Director at Ya Wealth said that despite FPIs’ shareholding in the Indian equity market at a record 15-year low, MSCI India has delivered 15 per cent returns in the last five years, which is three times the Emerging Market index’s.
Gupta further highlighted that DIIs or the domestic flows have exceeded $185 billion. “After ruling the Forex market for nearly two years, the US dollar index has finally drifted below 100, recording over 10% drop in the YTD. The US Fed rate cut buzz is expected to keep a tab on any rise in the American Greenback. So, in the wake of a weak US dollar, investors are expected to book profits in the US bond and currency markets. So, US-based FPIs with surplus money are expected to look at the emerging markets, and India will likely benefit from this soon,” he said.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
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