FII selling slows, domestic money holds the line

Indian equities enter November in a better position than October's headline foreign-outflow numbers suggest. Foreign investors continued to sell, but the pace slowed late in the month, while domestic institutions absorbed much of the supply and corporate earnings delivered a stronger-than-expected start to the season. Foreign portfolio investors sold about Rs 45,162 crore of Indian equities in October, ending the month as net sellers on 14 out of 20 sessions. Yet, they turned net buyers on six days, including Rs 3,598.54 crore on October 30, signalling that the intensity of the sell-off was easing.

Domestic institutional investors more than offset the foreign selling. They bought a net Rs 62,220 crore in October (roughly 138% of the FII outflow) and have purchased about Rs 7 lakh crore so far in 2026, against FII net sales of about Rs 4.5 lakh crore. That shift has changed the market's ownership structure. Domestic institutions now hold about 19% of the market, compared with roughly 14% for foreign investors, giving Indian equities a more stable domestic base even during periods of overseas selling. Earnings provide a stronger backdrop The earnings season has reinforced that support. Among 134 companies in Nomura's BSE 200 coverage that had reported September-quarter results, normalised profit after tax rose 34% year-on-year, beating consensus estimates by 18%.