The question facing Indian shares is whether the foreign buying will last. Foreign inflows into India reached a net $6.42 billion of equities in November so far, according to data from NSDL, and the pace has surprised traders who watched foreign funds sell for much of the year. The buying included about $1.6 billion on Thursday 5 November, the biggest single-day purchase in nearly six years, according to Reuters and provisional exchange data. The scale of that day’s buying set the tone for the month, and the flow has kept coming since, with large purchases on most trading days since the start of November.
Foreign institutional investors bought shares worth Rs 12,563.33 crore on Wednesday 11 November, and Rs 65,735 crore in total in November so far. The Nifty rose 9.55 percent in November so far, and the Sensex and Nifty rose close to 9 percent in the week to 7 November, their strongest weekly performance since February 2021, with a seven-session winning run. The foreign inflows have arrived as Brent crude fell from around $110 to about $92 to $96, a drop that eased pressure on India’s import bill and on inflation. The fall in crude has been one of the main reasons traders give for the return of foreign money, and it has cut a cost that weighs on many Indian firms.
Foreign inflows lift the Nifty in November
V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments, said: “This trend is likely to continue and has the potential to reach an all-time high number. Impressive earnings growth as evidenced by the good Q2 results and the macro relief from lower crude prices (Brent around USD 92) will support the rally.” Vijayakumar’s view on foreign inflows rests on two points, the earnings reported by companies for the second quarter and the relief from lower crude. The second-quarter results have been read as a sign that profits are holding up, and the fall in crude has cut a cost that weighs on many Indian firms, from transport to chemicals to paint makers.
Foreign inflows face questions on staying power
Caution has come from Bernstein, which cut its Nifty 50 year-end target to 25,000 from 26,000. Tanvi Kanchan of Anand Rathi said India had benefited from a rotation of funds and “rotations can reverse just as fast”. Hariselvan Radhakrishnan of HST Wealth said continued foreign buying, crude below $100 and a broader rally would be the signs to watch. The three views share a point, that the buying has been fast and that fast buying can turn. The case for foreign inflows to keep coming rests on earnings holding up and on crude staying below $100, and both points will be tested in the weeks ahead as companies report and oil trades.
The November total of $6.42 billion is large for a single month, and it has already changed the tone of the market after a year of selling. The test for foreign inflows now is whether the buying keeps coming at the pace seen since the start of November, when the flow turned sharply. Foreign portfolio investors remain net sellers of $24.98 billion in Indian shares for 2026, even after the November buying, and the figure shows how much selling came before the turn. The November buying has not yet undone the sales of the previous ten months, and the full-year figure will stay negative unless the flow holds through December.
The week to 7 November gave the clearest sign of the turn, with the Sensex and Nifty rising close to 9 percent in their strongest weekly performance since February 2021. The seven-session winning run that carried the indices higher was built on the same foreign inflows that NSDL has recorded for the month, and foreign inflows of that size have been rare in 2026. The rally has lifted the Nifty 9.55 percent in November so far, and the index closed at 25,255.05 on 11 November, its highest in more than eight months. Foreign portfolio investors remain net sellers of $24.98 billion in Indian shares for 2026.