Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) continued their buying spree in Indian equities for the third consecutive session on Friday, investing ₹8,831.1 crore — the highest single-day inflow since March 27, according to provisional data from the National Stock Exchange (NSE) released on Saturday.
The strong inflow reflects rising foreign investor confidence in Indian markets, especially amid broader global uncertainties.
On Thursday, FPIs had purchased shares worth ₹5,746.5 crore, taking the total net inflow so far in May to ₹18,620 crore. This marks a sharp improvement from April, when overseas investors had bought equities worth ₹4,223 crore, according to data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).
Domestic Institutional Investors (DIIs) also turned net buyers on Friday after a brief pause, investing ₹5,187.1 crore in equities.
Despite the robust foreign inflows, benchmark indices ended lower on Friday due to profit booking in large-cap stocks. The Nifty declined 42.30 points, or 0.17%, to close at 25,019.80, while the Sensex fell 200.15 points, or 0.24%, to settle at 82,330.59.
During the intraday session, the Nifty had slipped as much as 0.44% to 24,953.05, and the Sensex had dropped 0.47% to 82,146.95.
However, for the week ended May 16, both indices posted strong gains — with the Nifty rising 4.21% and the Sensex climbing 3.62% — marking their best weekly performance since October 2024.
“Nifty continues to trade above its short-term moving averages, maintaining a bullish trend. The next resistance is seen at 25,207, while support is placed around 24,800,” said Nandish Shah, Senior Derivatives and Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities.
FPI participation in Indian equities has seen a notable turnaround in May after a sluggish start to 2025. In the first three months of the year, foreign investors were net sellers — offloading equities worth ₹78,027 crore in January, ₹34,574 crore in February, and ₹3,973 crore in March.
— IANS