Cumulative FII inflows into India cross $100 bn mark

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) that have been betting big on the Indian equity market this year have seen their cumulative inflows since 1992 cross a significant milestone of $100 billion.

According to data available with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) net cumulative FII inflows as on November 10, 2010 was $101.25 billion. The market regulator maintains data on FII inflows since November 1992. Meanwhile, the current calendar year has also been the best in terms of annual FII inflows. According to Sebi, FIIs have been net buyers at $28.64 billion in 2010.

The record inflows have come at a time when most of the leading economies of the world are fighting against a slowdown in domestic growth. With interest rates hovering around near-zero levels in most of Europe and US, global investors are borrowing cheap and investing in countries that offer the potential of an attractive return on investment. India's benchmark indices - Sensex and Nifty - have also been one of the best-performing equity indices of the world in the recent past.

On Tuesday, Morgan Stanley said that it expected India's economic growth to outpace that of China by 2013. According to the global financial major, India's gross domestic product will rise to an average of 9-10 per cent in the next 10 years. China, in the same period, is expected to grow at an average rate of eight per cent, according to estimates of Morgan Stanley.

Interestingly, the massive buying by foreign investors comes at a time when most of the domestic institutional investors, including mutual funds and insurance companies have been sellers in the Indian equity market. As on November 10, there are a total of 1,738 FIIs registered in India, according to Sebi. Further, the number of registered sub-accounts is 5,592.

Apart from the equity market, FIIs have also invested nearly $18 billion in the Indian debt market ever since November 1992.