MFs step up buying as markets falter

Fund managers pump Rs 14,000 crore into stocks, providing a counterbalance to FPI pullout

India’s equity fund managers have stepped up buying even as benchmark indices have fallen more than 3 per cent in August. So far this month, equity schemes have bought shares worth nearly Rs 14,000 crore, the highest monthly buying tally for the year. 

The benchmark Sensex and the Nifty are down close to 3.5 per cent this month as foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have pulled out Rs 15,000 crore from stocks. The FPI sell-off was amid global risk aversion created by escalating tensions between the US and North Korea.

Market players say the correction could have been much steeper, if