Inward foreign investment $30 bn for 2014, cumulative over $200 bn

Investments by overseas investors in India this year reached $30 billion, while cumulative total inflows into the country crossed the $200-billion mark.

Data from November 1992 since foreign institutional investors (FIIs) began investing in Indian markets shows the cumulative figure is made up of about $159 billion investments into equities and about $42 billion in debt markets.

The net investments by foreign investors in Indian debt markets since the beginning of this calendar year have reached $17 billion, or Rs.120,000 crore, while the same for equities stand at $13 billion, or Rs.78,000 crore, taking the total to $30 billion, or Rs.180,000 crore.

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) continued to invest in the Indian equities market as they bought shares worth $3.87 billion in August, with the trade for the week ended Aug 28 at yet another record high.

The foreign institutional investors (FIIs) along with sub-accounts and qualified foreign investors have been clubbed together by market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to create a new investor category called FPIs, who invested $3.87 billion or Rs.23,539.61 crore in the Indian equities market in August.

The FPIs had poured in Rs.13,110.42 crore or $2.18 billion in Indian equities markets in July.

Expectations of stable GDP growth figures coupled with an overall expectation of further reform push by the new government and the quick notifications for the hike in foreign direct investment (FDI) limits in defence and railways have all led to positive investor sentiments.