FII invests Rs 5,414 cr in Apr; lowest in 16 months

Overseas investors have pumped in Rs 5,414 crore (about $1 billion) in the Indian stock market in April, the lowest in 16-months, amid political and economic worries.

With this, the total foreign investor investment in the country's equity market has reached Rs 61,036 crore ($11.3 billion) since the beginning of 2013.

In April, Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were gross buyers of shares worth Rs 61,007 crore, while they sold equities amounting to Rs 55,593 crore, translating into a net inflow of Rs 5,414 crore, according to the data available with market regulator Sebi.

This was the lowest net investment by FIIs in stocks since December 2011, when they had infused Rs 98 crore.

   
Market experts said FII inflows in the Indian equities have slowed during April because of a slew of factors such as profit-booking, concerns over high current account deficit (CAD) and political uncertainty."We have seen FIIs pumping in funds in the Indian equity market during the month, but they are concerned about various economic factors such as CAD touching a record high and political uncertainty," Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Ltd Head (Research) Alex Mathews said.

   
Apart from equity, FIIs have also poured in Rs 5,334 crore ($792 million) in the debt market last month taking the total investment to Rs 18,078 crore ($33.5 billion) in the segment so far this year.

As on April 30, the number of registered FIIs in the country stood at 1,767 and total number of sub-accounts were 6,374 during the same period.