Foreign investors cut selling as Indian stocks rebound from three-day slide

Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers of Indian equities on Wednesday, September 16, offloading shares worth ₹2,032.61 crore, according to provisional data from the exchanges.

Domestic institutional investors, meanwhile, remained net buyers, purchasing equities worth ₹3,908.23 crore during the session.

FIIs bought equities worth ₹12,959.04 crore and sold shares worth ₹14,991.65 crore, resulting in net selling of ₹2,032.61 crore.

DIIs bought shares worth ₹15,279.59 crore and sold equities worth ₹11,371.36 crore, resulting in net buying of ₹3,908.23 crore.

On Tuesday, FIIs had bought shares worth ₹13,194.76 crore and sold ₹16,172.62 crore, resulting in net selling of ₹2,977.86 crore. DIIs, meanwhile, bought equities worth ₹15,221.98 crore and sold ₹12,535.93 crore, resulting in net buying of ₹2,686.05 crore.

Indian stocks snap three-day losing streak

Indian equities snapped a three-day losing streak on Wednesday, with the benchmark indices recovering from their opening-hour lows and holding on to gains through the session.

The Sensex rose 333 points to 74,336, while the Nifty gained 99 points to settle at 23,218.

The Nifty managed to hold above the 23,200 mark despite relatively subdued market breadth, with midcaps marginally underperforming. The Nifty Bank was among the key supports, gaining 498 points to 56,292, while the Nifty Midcap index slipped four points to 60,874.

Financial and FMCG stocks led the recovery, while IT stocks emerged as a key drag. Four of the five biggest Nifty losers were from the IT sector, including TCS, Wipro, Infosys and Tech Mahindra. ITC, SBI and Axis Bank were among the biggest contributors to the Nifty's gains.

Among individual movers, Patanjali Foods surged 7% on heavy volumes, while PB Fintech gained 5% following reports on the IRDAI commission paper. Insurance distributors remained in focus as investors assessed the potential impact of changes to commission structures.

Payment stocks also remained active following the new UPI Merchant Discount Rate framework. Paytm rose 4%, while Pine Labs slipped 4% as investors booked profits after the initial reaction to the return of MDR.

The new framework introduces a 0.4% MDR on eligible UPI person-to-merchant transactions above ₹2,000 from October 15, capped at ₹300, while customers will continue to use UPI free of charge.

The rupee ended unchanged at 95.96 against the US dollar.

Also Read: Fortis Healthcare moves Supreme Court to stop forensic audit of IHH takeover