FPI Tracker: IT stocks see ₹17,000 crore outflows in February; Capital Goods, Financials lead inflows
FPI outflows in the Indian IT sector amounted to ₹16,949 crore during February. This followed FPI selling worth ₹1,835 crore in IT stocks in January, as per NSDL data.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) sold Indian Information Technology (IT) stocks worth nearly ₹17,000 crore in February amid rising concerns about potential disruption from artificial intelligence (AI) in the sector. The Nifty IT index declined nearly 20% during the month.
The sharp sell-off in IT stocks came even as overall foreign portfolio investment flows into the Indian stock market remained positive. FPIs were net buyers of Indian equities worth ₹22,615 crore in February, according to data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL).
The IT sector witnessed the highest selling pressure, with FPI outflows amounting to ₹16,949 crore during the month. A significant portion of the selling occurred in the first half of February, when foreign investors offloaded IT stocks worth ₹10,956 crore. In the second half of the month, FPIs sold IT shares worth ₹5,993 crore.
This followed FPI selling of ₹1,835 crore in IT stocks in January, as per NSDL data.
As a result of the sustained selling, FPIs’ total investment in IT stocks declined 21.76% to ₹4,17,719 crore at the end of February, down from ₹5,33,953 crore in January.
Other sectors witnessing FPI outflows
Apart from IT, FPI outflows were also seen in several other sectors. The Consumer Services sector recorded outflows of ₹4,172 crore, followed by Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) at ₹1,951 crore and Telecommunication at ₹1,881 crore.
The Consumer Durables sector also saw FPI selling worth ₹756 crore during the month, according to NSDL data.
Sectors attracting FPI inflows
On the other hand, several sectors witnessed strong foreign inflows in February. The Capital Goods sector attracted the highest FPI investment at ₹12,135 crore, followed by Financial Services with inflows of ₹8,418 crore.
The Metals & Mining sector saw FPI buying worth ₹5,638 crore, while the Oil, Gas & Consumable Fuels sector received inflows of ₹5,381 crore.
Additionally, the Power and Construction sectors attracted FPI investments worth ₹4,506 crore and ₹4,487 crore, respectively. The Automobile and Auto Components sector also recorded FPI buying of ₹3,586 crore during February.
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