FPI Selling Tops Rs 52,000 Crore in October; Nifty Rallies

Foreign portfolio investors withdrew approximately Rs 52,100 crore from Indian equities in October through the week ended October 16, surpassing September’s full-month outflow of Rs 35,861 crore, Economic Times Markets reported. Yet the Nifty rose 2.8% during the week to close at 23,146, while the Sensex gained 3.1%.

The report cited settled market data showing net foreign selling of Rs 7,934 crore during October 12–16. Cumulative withdrawals in calendar year 2026 had exceeded Rs 3 lakh crore, against a backdrop of higher global bond yields, expensive crude oil and uncertainty over US interest rates.

Domestic buying and IT gains support the rebound

Domestic institutional investors absorbed part of the overseas selling, helping Indian benchmarks recover. Technology shares led the advance: the Nifty IT index climbed 11.7% over the week, with the report linking the rally to improving sentiment around artificial intelligence-related business opportunities and quarterly earnings from major IT companies.

The simultaneous rise in share prices and foreign withdrawals illustrates why FPI flows alone do not explain market direction. In this period, domestic demand and sector-specific gains provided a counterweight to overseas selling.

Friday’s buying turn was provisional

Provisional exchange figures put foreign selling for the week at nearly Rs 8,990 crore, a different measure from the settled-data total. Friday brought provisional net purchases of Rs 1,166 crore, ending what the report described as a 15-session selling run that began on September 24.

Approximately Rs 84,000 crore had been withdrawn during that run, according to the provisional figures cited. Settled data nevertheless showed net selling across the week, with outflows on four of the five reporting days. Friday’s provisional buying therefore did not establish a reversal in the broader withdrawal trend.

US yields and oil prices weigh on foreign appetite

The report identified rising US Treasury yields as a major pressure on emerging-market allocations. It put the US 10-year yield at around 5.3%, after September inflation of 3.7% exceeded expectations of 3.6%. More attractive returns on dollar assets can draw capital away from emerging-market equities.

It also reported that the dollar index reached an 18-month high. Market-implied odds of a Federal Reserve rate increase at the October 28 meeting rose from about 22% to more than 40%, according to the FPI flows report it cited. Those probabilities reflect market expectations, not a policy decision.

Brent crude opened the week at $104.95 a barrel and touched $110 on Friday, the account said. For India, higher imported energy costs can increase inflation pressure, widen the current account deficit and squeeze margins at energy-dependent businesses.

Rupee recovers amid RBI measures

Despite those pressures, the rupee recovered about 1.9% during the week to 95.07 against the dollar, according to the report. It attributed support to Reserve Bank of India measures, including a dedicated dollar window for public-sector oil marketing companies.

The currency recovery followed what the report described as the RBI’s October 7 decision to raise the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.50% and move its policy stance towards calibrated tightening.