Foreign portfolio investors remained net sellers in Indian markets for the shortened trading week ending April 30, 2026, pulling out a total of ₹13,944.59 crore across equity, debt, hybrid, and mutual fund instruments over four sessions — Monday through Thursday. According to data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL), the selloff was heavily skewed toward equities, with net equity outflows reaching ₹16,880.49 crore for the week. Markets stayed closed on Friday for Maharashtra Day, contributing to the shortened trading period.
The overall daily outflow picture showed a clear moderating trend across all asset classes combined. From a net outflow of ₹8,800.14 crore on Monday, the figure eased to ₹3,811.46 crore on Tuesday, then to ₹1,112.37 crore on Wednesday, before narrowing sharply to ₹220.62 crore on Thursday. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine, this suggests that selling pressure, while persistent, was losing intensity by the end of the week. The week's total net equity outflow of ₹16,880.49 crore was led by Monday's steepest single-session sell-off of ₹8,721.65 crore.
Debt markets offered a partial counterweight to the equity outflows. While FPIs were net sellers in certain debt segments — particularly the Fully Accessible Route (FAR) on Monday and Tuesday — they turned net buyers in FAR on Wednesday (₹1,338.95 crore) and Thursday (₹1,257.01 crore). The Voluntary Retention Route (VRR) segment also saw inflows on Monday (₹1,591.32 crore) and Tuesday (₹911.11 crore), even as general limit debt flows remained mixed through the week.
The sustained outflows were driven by a cocktail of global headwinds, according to Dr V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Investments Limited. During April, FPIs were sellers in the market for ₹63,167 crore while they invested ₹2,319 crore through the primary market, taking the net FPI outflows to ₹60,848 crore. Vijayakumar noted that the total FPI outflows from India in 2026 stand at a massive ₹1,91,968 crore, with Japan, South Korea and Taiwan attracting significant inflows while India faces headwinds from the energy crisis and currency depreciation.
Despite the outflows, domestic institutional investors continued to absorb selling pressure, providing a floor to the market. The Nifty 50 ended the week with a modest gain of 0.42%, closing at 23,997.55, while the BSE Sensex edged up 0.33% to close at 76,913. Geopolitical uncertainty compounded the pressure, with renewed tensions around the U.S.–Iran situation and Brent crude surging over 7% week-on-week, approaching $114 per barrel. The rupee's depreciation to a historic low widened India's import bill and compressed risk appetite further.
