Markets Extend Gains for Fourth Day as FPI Buying Hits One-Year High

Foreign Buying and Cooling Oil Fears Lift Indian Shares

A fourth straight advance put overseas flows, crude prices and festive demand back in focus — while the rally remained uneven beneath the headline gains.

Foreign flows provide a powerful near-term signal

The Nifty 50 closed 1.58% higher at 23,810.85 and the Sensex added 1.62% to 76,917.85, extending the market’s advance to four sessions. Foreign institutional investors bought a net ₹6,837 crore of Indian equities on November 3, their biggest single-day purchase since October 2025. Domestic institutions moved the other way, selling ₹3,679 crore.

That contrast matters: overseas demand helped reinforce the rally, but domestic selling shows that buying was not uniform across investor groups. Traders also appeared to position for further gains, with futures open interest falling 7.1% as the index advanced—a move that suggests some bearish positions were being closed, rather than proving that fresh bullish exposure had broadly taken hold.

Oil eased from its highs, but the risk remains

Brent crude rose about 2% to $105, after falling from $108 to $104 while Indian markets were closed. Investors seemed to treat the later increase as limited rather than a fresh shock, amid hopes of a calmer situation around the Strait of Hormuz. Unconfirmed reports of a US strike on Qeshm Island added uncertainty, however, and the market’s response does not remove the risk that renewed oil pressure could weigh on sentiment.

Oil-sensitive businesses moved in different directions. Asian Paints gained 3.99% and InterGlobe Aviation rose 2.1%, while oil producers ONGC and Oil India fell. For investors, the distinction is important: the same crude-price move can support companies whose input costs are linked to oil while putting pressure on producers when prices decline.

FMCG leads, while broader participation is more restrained

The Nifty FMCG index advanced 3.65%, supported by expectations of festive demand, lower input-cost pressure and strong results from companies including Marico. Marico rose 10% after announcing its second-quarter results, while Britannia Industries gained 6.4%. Yet analysts also pointed to continuing cost pressures and weak rural demand, with a potential El Niño impact cited as a risk. The sector’s one-day rally therefore does not settle the question of how durable consumption improvement will be.

Capital-markets stocks were the session’s strongest group: the Nifty Capital Markets index rose 4.53%, with gains in MCX, Angel One, CDSL and BSE. Higher trading activity can benefit these businesses, but the sharp advances also leave their performance sensitive to whether market participation and volumes persist. The benchmark’s strength was not matched evenly: the Nifty Smallcap 250 gained 0.42%, and only 11 Nifty 50 stocks fell.

Key Highlights

• The Nifty rose 1.58% to 23,810.85, marking a fourth consecutive session of gains.
• Foreign investors bought ₹6,837 crore of equities on November 3; domestic institutions sold ₹3,679 crore.
• FMCG and capital-markets indices led sector gains, rising 3.65% and 4.53%, respectively.
• Brent crude reached $105 after retreating from $108, keeping oil-related uncertainty in view.
• Small-cap indices lagged the benchmark, signalling less consistent participation in the rally.

Investor Note: The rally has support from foreign buying, earnings and improving demand expectations, but crude prices, global developments and the gap between large- and small-cap performance remain important risks. After a strong four-session advance, investors may want to stay selective and assess company fundamentals rather than assume the gains will continue at the same pace.