A third of the year in ten days
From 1 January to 23 June 2026, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold a net ₹3,40,377.5 crore of Indian equities across 116 sessions. They were net sellers on 89 of them.
Just ten of those sessions account for ₹1,07,745.2 crore, 31.7% of the year's net selling. Here they are, with what domestic institutions (DIIs) and the Nifty 50 did on the same days. All flow figures are NSE's provisional cash-market numbers in ₹ crore.
The ten days
| Date | FII net | DII net | Nifty 50 that day |
|---|---|---|---|
| 29 May | −21,105.9 | +16,764.1 | −1.50% |
| 30 Mar | −11,163.1 | +14,894.7 | −2.14% |
| 13 Mar | −10,716.6 | +9,977.4 | −2.06% |
| 23 Mar | −10,414.2 | +12,034.0 | −2.60% |
| 2 Apr | −9,931.1 | +7,208.4 | +0.15% |
| 16 Mar | −9,365.5 | +12,593.4 | +1.11% |
| 24 Apr | −8,827.9 | +4,700.7 | −1.14% |
| 5 Jun | −8,776.2 | +9,133.6 | −0.21% |
| 4 Mar | −8,752.6 | +12,068.2 | −1.55% |
| 7 Apr | −8,692.1 | +7,979.5 | +0.68% |
| Total | −1,07,745.2 | +1,07,354.0 |
Five of the ten fall in March, three in April, and one each in May and June. None comes from January or February.
29 May stands apart: nearly twice the next-largest day, and the largest single day of FII net selling in our whole record, which starts in September 2024. The others form a tight cluster between ₹8,692 crore and ₹11,163 crore.
What the Nifty did
The index fell on seven of the ten days and rose on three. Its average move on them was −0.93%, against −0.08% for the average session of 2026.
So heavy foreign selling and a falling index do go together more often than not. But the link is loose in both directions:
- Heavy selling, rising index. On 16 March FIIs sold ₹9,365.5 crore and the Nifty rose 1.11%. On 2 and 7 April, two more of the ten, it also rose.
- Bad days without the heaviest selling. The Nifty's worst session of the year, −3.26% on 19 March, came with FII selling of ₹7,558.2 crore, only the 17th-largest of the year. Its sixth-worst, −1.83% on 12 May, came with just ₹1,959.4 crore.
Only five of the Nifty's ten worst days of 2026 appear in the table above.
How DIIs answered
DIIs were net buyers on all ten days, for ₹1,07,354.0 crore in total, 99.6% of the FII selling on the same days. On five of them, 4, 16, 23 and 30 March and 5 June, they bought more than FIIs sold.
Their largest purchases line up with the largest sales. 29 May's ₹16,764.1 crore is the biggest DII day in our record, and 30 March's ₹14,894.7 crore the second-biggest.
Even matching FII selling almost rupee for rupee did not keep the index up on those days. On seven of the ten it fell anyway.
Against the rest of the record
2026's selling days are heavier than earlier ones. Of the ten biggest FII selling days in our record since September 2024, five are from 2026. Before this year, only seven sessions in the record saw net sales as large as 2026's tenth-biggest day, ₹8,692.1 crore.
What this does not tell you
Big days are not the whole story. Two-thirds of 2026's selling came on the other 106 sessions, a steady drip rather than a few shocks.
The data gives no reasons. We know how much was sold, not what or why, and we do not attribute these days to news.
The figures are provisional and partial. NSE publishes them each evening for the cash market only, rounded here to ₹0.1 crore a day. NSDL's monthly FPI data, which includes debt and primary-market deals, will differ.
Past selling does not predict the next session. None of these patterns is a trading signal.
Where to go from here
The FII and DII data page carries every session. Our May flows post looks at 29 May in detail, including its record gross turnover, and our March flows post covers the month that supplied half of this list. If days like these test your nerve, loss aversion and the psychology of a market crash are worth reading.
Frequently asked questions
What was the biggest FII selling day of 2026?
29 May 2026, when foreign institutional investors sold a net ₹21,105.9 crore of Indian shares in one session, on NSE's provisional figures. It is also the largest single day of FII net selling in our record, which starts in September 2024. DIIs bought ₹16,764.1 crore that day and the Nifty 50 fell 1.50%.
Does the Nifty always fall when FIIs sell heavily?
No. On the ten heaviest FII selling days of 2026 to 23 June, the Nifty 50 fell on seven and rose on three, including a 1.11% gain on 16 March when FIIs sold ₹9,365.5 crore.
How did DIIs respond on the biggest FII selling days?
They were net buyers on all ten, for ₹1,07,354.0 crore in total, against FII net sales of ₹1,07,745.2 crore on the same days: 99.6% of it.
This is commentary on published data, not investment advice. WealthTicker is not a SEBI-registered adviser or distributor. Figures are as of the dates stated and can be revised by their source.
Keep reading
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