Mumbai: Financial services stocks remained the top pick of overseas fund managers in the second half of December after witnessing record flows in the first part of the month.
The sector received ₹6,277 crore in the period between December 16 and 30, according to the data from National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL). In the December 1-15 period, these stocks attracted ₹22,891 crore.
Information technology (IT), oil and gas and capital goods were among the other biggest investments done by foreign portfolio investors (FPI) between December 16 and 30 when they bought shares worth ₹24,344 crore across 18 sectors on average, according to NSDL data. The outflows were highest in real estate, media, and textiles sectors during this period.
In the last half of December, the inflow of foreign money in the IT sector stocks was ₹3,763 crore, after they pumped ₹1,422 crore into them in the first half of December. Oil & gas and capital goods received flows worth ₹3,412 crore and ₹2,114 crore, respectively, in the second half of December.
Foreign investors infused ₹960 crore in the power sector up from the ₹91 crore investment in the first-half of December. In November 2023, they divested shares worth ₹2,952 crore.
In the last 15 days of December, foreign investors were sellers to the tune of ₹942 crore. Realty, telecommunication, and textiles witnessed profit booking worth ₹561 crore, ₹264 crore and ₹53 crore, respectively.
The realty sector has seen outflows in December 2023 after inflows worth ₹1,112 crore in November 2023. Overseas investors turned sellers in telecom shares in the second-half of December, after buying shares worth ₹2,675 crore in the first half of the month.