FPI buying in Indian shares hits nine-month high in May: NSDL – Times of India

BENGALURU: Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) extended their buying streak in Indian equities in the new financial year, having bought shares worth Rs 438.38 billion ($5.31 billion) on a net basis in the month of May, data from the National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) showed on Tuesday. This was the largest buy by FPIs in nine months since August 2022. In fact, FPIs bought Indian equities in each of the 21 sessions in the month.
FPIs were net purchasers in March and April, largely due to U.S. investment firm GQG Partners’ $1.87 billion investment in four Adani group companies and stable quarterly earnings.
The benchmark Nifty 50 jumped 2.60% in May, aided by “encouraging March-quarter results and robust FPI flows,” said Deepak Jasani, head of retail research at HDFC Securities.
FPI-buying powered the Nifty 50 7% higher between March 1 and May 31, with the benchmark logging gains in each of the last three months.
WHAT FPIs BOUGHT IN MAY
After selling financial services shares worth Rs 299.93 billion in fiscal 2023, FPIs showed renewed interest in the sector, buying 176.71 billion rupees in May.
They bought Rs 76.90 billion in the sector in April.
Auto, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) and healthcare were the other sectors that saw interest from FPIs in May.
“The March-quarter results season saw significant earnings beat across several sectors,” said analysts at ICICI Securities. They picked out financials, auto and consumer discretionary as top-performing segments in terms of earnings.
“FPI inflows in Indian equities will remain strong in fiscal 2024 after the record sale of nearly 4 trillion rupees over the last three years,” said Varun Saboo, Head – Equities, Anand Rathi Shares and Stock Brokers.