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India: foreign investor flows and RBI interest rates

Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have sold more Indian shares than they bought in October 2026: a net −₹34,040 crore (−$3.5 billion) of equity through 29 Oct 2026, with net buying on 7 of 19 trading days. The rupee traded between 94.70 and 96.77 per dollar on those days. The Reserve Bank of India's policy repo rate is 5.50%, last changed on 7 Oct 2026.

Latest day · 29 Oct 2026+2,124
October so far−34,040
2026 so far−294,342
RBI repo rate5.50%

Equity figures in ₹ crore (1 crore = 10 million rupees); plus means foreign investors bought more than they sold. They cover stock-exchange trades and the primary market (IPOs, block placements and similar).

October 2026, day by day

−18k−12k−6k06k12k1 Oct8 Oct14 Oct21 Oct27 Oct
DayStock exchangePrimary marketEquity totalDebtUS$ million₹ per $
29 Oct 2026 +1,113 +1,011 +2,124 +1,169 +223 95.23
28 Oct 2026 +4,198 +6,386 +10,584 −1,831 +1,112 95.16
27 Oct 2026 −1,341 +377 −964 +1,600 −101 95.15
26 Oct 2026 +2,098 +174 +2,272 +550 +239 94.94
23 Oct 2026 −2,262 +2,417 +155 −3,021 +16 94.70
22 Oct 2026 +1,407 +252 +1,659 +490 +175 94.71
21 Oct 2026 −475 +61 −413 +121 −44 94.77
19 Oct 2026 +2,629 +14 +2,643 −39 +278 95.02
16 Oct 2026 −4,158 +13 −4,146 −1,071 −436 95.07
15 Oct 2026 −1,094 −8 −1,102 +2,390 −116 95.03
14 Oct 2026 −1,552 +115 −1,436 −195 −151 95.25
13 Oct 2026 +545 +1,455 +2,001 −1,838 +209 95.75
12 Oct 2026 −3,252 +1 −3,251 −864 −337 96.61
9 Oct 2026 −12,943 +59 −12,884 −2,353 −1,331 96.77
8 Oct 2026 −6,206 +51 −6,156 +3,529 −637 96.62
7 Oct 2026 −2,490 +40 −2,450 +1,483 −254 96.43
6 Oct 2026 −4,281 +119 −4,163 +324 −432 96.28
5 Oct 2026 −9,635 +353 −9,282 −210 −967 95.99
1 Oct 2026 −9,570 +338 −9,232 −199 −962 95.98

Net investment in ₹ crore. NSDL compiles these from the trade reports that custodians send to the depositories, so a day's figure covers trades up to the previous trading day or two. "Debt" adds the general limit, voluntary retention route and fully accessible route. Our daily record starts on 1 Oct 2026: the source page only shows the current month, so earlier days are not available to us.

2026, month by month

−120k−80k−40k040kJanMarMayJulSep
MonthEquityDebtHybrid + funds + AIFsAll FPINifty 50
October (to date) −34,040 +34 +9,654 −24,351 +0.3%
September −35,861 −20,727 −1,856 −58,443 −6.1%
August +29,631 −1,457 −2,682 +25,492 −1.2%
July +20,200 +18,661 +1,170 +40,031 +2.2%
June −49,340 +55,518 −1,510 +4,669 +1.4%
May −32,963 +2,757 +723 −29,484 −1.9%
April −60,847 −10,826 +789 −70,885 +7.5%
March −117,775 −8,469 +506 −125,736 −11.3%
February +22,615 +18,791 −3,602 +37,804 −0.6%
January −35,962 +6,013 +710 −29,240 −3.1%

Net FPI investment in ₹ crore from NSDL's calendar-year table; the month in progress is marked. "Nifty 50" is the index's change over the same calendar month in our own price data (price only, no dividends).

Fiscal year by fiscal year since 1992-93

−200k0200k400k199219982004201020162022

India's fiscal year runs April to March. Across the 26 complete fiscal years from 2000-01 to 2025-26 that we can compare with the Nifty 50: the index rose in 14 of the 19 years when foreign investors were net buyers of Indian equity, and fell in 4 of the 7 years when they were net sellers. The Nifty's average change was +20.5% in buying years and −1.7% in selling years. The correlation between the two series is 0.43, a moderate positive link. The biggest net purchase was ₹274,032 crore in FY 2020-21; the biggest net sale was ₹180,832 crore in FY 2025-26. In 3 of the selling years the index still rose, so selling by foreigners is not a call on its own.

Fiscal yearFPI equityFPI debtNifty 50
2026-27 (to date) −163,222 +43,962 +1.6%
2025-26 −180,832 +25,807 −5.1%
2024-25 −127,041 +143,162 +5.3%
2023-24 +208,212 +118,087 +28.6%
2022-23 −37,632 −3,123 −0.6%
2021-22 −140,010 +14,270 +18.9%
2020-21 +274,032 −17,178 +70.9%
2019-20 +6,153 −41,379 −26.0%
2018-19 −88 −42,357 +14.9%
2017-18 +25,635 +119,036 +10.2%
2016-17 +55,703 −7,292 +18.5%
2015-16 −14,172 −4,004 −8.9%
2014-15 +111,333 +166,127 +26.7%
2013-14 +79,709 −28,059 +18.0%

Net FPI investment in ₹ crore from NSDL's financial-year table; the table shows the latest 14 fiscal years, the chart all 35. Since 1992-93 foreign investors have put a net ₹677,501 crore into Indian equity, a total built from years of buying and selling of very different size. The Nifty 50 column compares the last close before 1 April with the one a year later in our price data, which start in January 2000, so earlier years show a dash. This shows what happened together, not what causes what: foreign investors also tend to buy after prices have risen and sell after they have fallen.

What the RBI charges and requires

RateLevelWhat it is
Policy repo rate5.50%The rate at which the RBI lends to banks against government securities; the main policy lever.
Standing deposit facility5.25%What banks earn parking spare cash at the RBI; the floor of the rate corridor.
Marginal standing facility5.75%What banks pay for emergency overnight money; the ceiling of the corridor.
Bank rate5.75%The rate used for penal interest on reserve shortfalls.
Cash reserve ratio (CRR)3.00%Share of deposits banks must keep as cash with the RBI.
Statutory liquidity ratio (SLR)18.00%Share of deposits banks must hold in government securities and cash.
Overnight call money4.30% to 5.85%Range at which banks lent to each other overnight on the latest day published. (28 Oct 2026)
91-day Treasury bill5.93%Cut-off yield at the latest auction. (28 Oct 2026)
364-day Treasury bill6.69%Cut-off yield at the latest auction. (28 Oct 2026)
Overnight MCLR7.80% to 8.00%Range across banks of the marginal cost of funds based lending rate.
Base rate8.40% to 10.00%Range across banks of the older lending benchmark.
Savings deposit rate2.50%What banks pay on savings accounts.
Term deposits over 1 year6.00% to 6.75%Range across banks.

Taken from the RBI's website on 29 Oct 2026. The repo rate went from 5.25% to 5.50% on 7 Oct 2026. Higher rates make borrowing dearer for companies and households and tend to weigh on rate-sensitive shares; banks often earn more on their loans. Compare other central banks on our interest rates page, and see the Nifty 50 (closed at 22,698.85 on 28 Oct 2026) and the India country profile.

Where the numbers come from

  • Foreign portfolio investment: the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) FPI monitor, reports "Daily Trends in FPI Investments", "Current Month", "Calendar Year" and "Financial Year". Updated each trading day; before publishing we check that the daily figures of the current month add up to NSDL's own calendar-year total.
  • Interest rates and reserve ratios: the Reserve Bank of India website.
  • Nifty 50 changes: our own index price data. Derivative-market flows of FPIs, individual FPIs and sector splits are published by NSDL but not shown here.
  • Published statistics only, for information. Not investment advice.