Foreign fund inflow at $9.74 bn in May; up from last year
12 Jul 2011
The combined flow of foreign direct and portfolio (institutional) investments into the country for April-May rose to $9.74 billion, from $7.8 billion in the same period a year ago, according to Reserve Bank of India data.
Foreign direct investments (FDI) were at $7.78 billion, many times more than the funds brought in by foreign institutional investors (FIIs). Portfolio investments were just shy of $2-billion mark, at $1.96 billion, in the first two months of 2011-12.
In 2010-11, direct flows in April-May had stood at $4.34 billion. Portfolio investments were lower at $3.4 billion. Portfolio flows were positive in both the months.
In 2011-12, portfolio investments were positive in April, at $3.54 billion, while there was an outflow of $1.58 billion from the Indian capital markets in May.
Most analysts felt the political uncertainty in the aftermath of action against politicians, senior government officials and top private-sector executives for alleged involvement in telecom and Commonwealth Games scams influenced investment outlook.
Contrary to variations in portfolio investments, direct flows maintained a steady upward flow. FDI stood at $3.12 billion in April and $4.66 billion in May.
