Mumbai:
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have withdrawn a whopping Rs 37,976 crore on a net basis from the Indian markets in March so far amid the coronavirus pandemic triggering fears of a global recession.
Overseas investors pulled out a net sum of Rs 24,776.36 crore from equities and Rs 13,199.54 crore from the debt segment between Mar 2-13, depositories data showed.
This translates into a total net outflow of Rs 37,975.90 crore during the period under review.
Prior to this, foreign investors were net buyers for six consecutive months since September 2019.
"The spread of coronavirus outbreak, which has now been declared a pandemic, and continued slowdown in the global economy, has created a vicious cycle which is consuming investors worldwide," said Himanshu Srivastava, senior analyst manager research, Morningstar Investment Adviser India.
Global markets reeled last week after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic, and expressed deep concern over the "alarming levels of inaction".
Given the ongoing scenario, foreign investors have taken a flight to safer investment options, such as dollar denominated asset classes and gold as against fixed income securities of emerging markets like India, he added.
Going forward, as coronavirus crosses boundaries and affects other countries, it may have a more serious impact on the already slowing global economy and on foreign flows into emerging markets such as India, Srivastava said.
The 10 most valued domestic companies lost a massive Rs 4,22,393.44 crore in market capitalisation last week, with heavyweights TCS and RIL taking the biggest hit.
In a nerve-wracking week for the markets, the BSE Sensex plummeted 3,473.14 points or 9.24 per cent, largely in tandem with global equities which were hammered by panic selling amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The market capitalisation (m-cap) of TCS dropped by Rs 1,16,549.07 crore to reach Rs 6,78,168.49 crore for the week ended Friday.Reliance Industries' m-cap plummeted Rs 1,03,425.15 crore to Rs 7,01,693.52 crore.Infosys was another major drag, with its valuation plunging Rs 41,315.98 crore to Rs 2,73,505.62 crore.HDFC Bank's m-cap tanked Rs 34,919.51 crore to reach Rs 5,87,190.43 crore and that of Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) tumbled Rs 33,208.35 crore to Rs 4,40,151.42 crore.The valuation of Kotak Mahindra Bank declined Rs 30,931.1 crore to Rs 2,81,237.76 crore and that of ICICI Bank fell Rs 25,098.54 crore to Rs 2,89,606.69 crore.