Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) turned buyers in Indian equities for a second straight month, pumping Rs 30,919 crore into the market in August and offering the first signs of a possible shift in foreign investor flows after four consecutive months of heavy selling.

The August inflow, following Rs 20,200 crore of buying in July, marks a sharp reversal from the prolonged selling spell. The change comes amid improving corporate earnings, resilient economic activity, a stable rupee and easing geopolitical concerns.

However, the weekly flows tell a different story. FIIs stayed net sellers for the second consecutive week during the period under review, offloading Rs 2,060 crore worth of Indian equities. Domestic institutional investors (DIIs), meanwhile, extended their buying streak with net purchases of Rs 19,309 crore.

Over the past month (28th July to 28th August), FIIs bought through the first three weeks before turning sellers in the final two, ending the stretch with net purchases of Rs 8,092 crore, while DIIs stayed net buyers across the entire stretch, absorbing the foreign selling pressure with net inflows of Rs 56,737 crore, according to Pabitro Mukherjee, Deputy Vice President-Research, Bajaj Broking.

The divergence between foreign and domestic institutional flows has remained pronounced, with DIIs continuing to absorb selling pressure from overseas investors.

Further, the monthly turnaround comes with a caveat. FPIs remain net sellers in Indian equities in 2026, with cumulative withdrawals of Rs 2.23 lakh crore so far—already well above the Rs 1.66 lakh crore they pulled out during all of 2025. With foreign flows now positive for two consecutive months, the key question is whether the latest buying marks a sustained shift or a pause in the broader sell-off.
Will FPIs buy or sell Indian equities?V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments, said the recent direction of FPI flows could be influenced by the reversal of the chip trade, rupee stability and improving earnings growth in India.

“The important factors driving FPI flows into India are the reversal of the chip trade, stability in the rupee and more importantly, improving earnings growth in India. A significant trend in FPI investment in India recently is the direction of flows towards the SMIDs (mid- and small-caps). Growth and earnings momentum are much higher in the SMIDs compared to the large-caps. This trend of FPI investment in SMIDs is likely to continue.”

The recent foreign buying has also been accompanied by a shift in the segment of the market attracting overseas flows, with mid- and small-cap stocks gaining attention.

Market remains under pressure despite monthly FPI inflows

The broader market, however, continued to face pressure during the week. Benchmark indices extended their decline for the third consecutive week as higher crude oil prices and continued geopolitical concerns weighed on investor sentiment.

With limited directional triggers, investors remained focused on sectoral rotation and stock-specific opportunities. The Nifty started the week on a positive note and touched an intra-week high of 24,378 on Wednesday. However, it surrendered its gains in the second half of the week and slipped to an intra-week low of 24,076.

The index eventually closed at 24,175, down 0.3% for the week.

Looking ahead, investors will watch global commodity prices, geopolitical developments and key macroeconomic data for cues on institutional flows.

“In the coming month, investors will closely monitor movements in Brent crude prices and developments surrounding US-Iran tensions. Escalating US-Canada trade tensions could further add to market uncertainty and keep investors cautious. Meanwhile, elevated US bond yields remain a key concern, with markets awaiting upcoming inflation data ahead of the Federal Reserve’s policy meeting in mid-September. On the domestic front, Q1 GDP growth and inflation data will remain the key economic indicators to watch for Institutional flows,” said Mukherjee.

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Nifty technical setup remains balanced

Hariselvan Radhakrishnan, Founder & CEO of HST Wealth, a SEBI-registered Research Analyst firm, said investors will have several important domestic and overseas macroeconomic releases to track in the coming week.

“A series of important domestic and overseas macroeconomic releases will be in focus this week, with investors looking for fresh direction after a largely range-bound market. India’s first-quarter GDP data on Monday will offer insights into the domestic growth trajectory, while Friday’s U.S. non-farm payrolls report is expected to influence global market sentiment as investors reassess expectations for the Federal Reserve’s September policy decision following Kevin Warsh’s hawkish Jackson Hole address.”

On the technical front, Radhakrishnan said the Nifty remains in a consolidation phase with a positive bias. For now, the technical picture remains finely balanced. On the weekly timeframe, the Nifty continues to remain in a consolidation phase with a positive bias. The index closed above its 20-week moving average at 24,036, keeping the medium-term uptrend intact. However, it remains below the 100-week moving average at 24,423, which has continued to act as a key resistance level and capped advances during the quarter. “The weekly RSI at 50.07 remains in neutral territory, while the MACD has recovered from negative levels. Momentum is showing signs of improvement, although a decisive acceleration is yet to emerge.”

He added that the weekly chart is forming a potential rising-three pattern.

“The weekly chart is also forming a potential rising-three pattern, which generally represents a pause within an existing uptrend that typically resolves upward. The pattern would gain confirmation on a sustained close above the 24,190–24,335 zone, opening the way towards 24,710. Conversely, a close below 24,000 would invalidate the setup and could lead to deeper weakness.”

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of Economic Times)

Nifty spent the week consolidating in a narrow range and ended on a negative note, with its broader technical structure remaining largely unchanged. The index oscillated within a 302-point range between 24,076.85 and 24,378.60, reflecting the continued absence of a clear directional trigger. Volatility eased further, with India VIX declining 4.64% to 10.68, keeping volatility expectations subdued.

Nifty eventually closed at 24,175.65, registering a mild weekly loss of 76.35 points (-0.31%). The index continues to consolidate within its established range, with the 23,900–24,000 zone remaining an important support area. On the upside, a significant cluster of moving averages continues to restrict meaningful gains.

Nifty is currently caught between these support and resistance zones, and unless either boundary is decisively breached, the index is likely to remain rangebound. A sustained move below 23,900 could invite incremental weakness, while a convincing move above the cluster of major moving averages in the 24,400–24,750 region would be required for the index to regain directional strength.

The coming week is likely to see a quiet to cautiously positive start, although the broader trading range may continue to dominate price action. Immediate resistance is expected at 24,330 and 24,500, while supports are likely at 24,000 and 23,900.

The weekly RSI stands at 49.11, remaining neutral and showing no meaningful bullish or bearish divergence against price. The weekly MACD remains below the zero line but above its signal line, while the positive histogram indicates that downside momentum has moderated. The latest weekly candle has a relatively small bearish body but does not indicate indecision. Pattern analysis also continues to point to an extended consolidation.

Nifty remains below a key long-term moving-average cluster, with the 100-week MA at 24,428, the 200-DMA at 24,652 and the 50-week MA at 24,729. Their proximity creates a formidable 24,400–24,750 resistance zone, making this area crucial for any sustainable breakout. On the downside, the 23,900–24,000 zone continues to provide an important floor. Until either side is decisively breached, the existing range should be respected.
Given this setup, aggressive directional exposure may not be rewarding while Nifty remains trapped within its defined boundaries. Fresh buying should remain selective and stock-specific, particularly as the index approaches the overhead moving-average cluster, while existing gains should be protected at higher levels. Conversely, short positions should not be chased while the 23,900–24,000 support zone remains intact.The preferred approach for the coming week is therefore to remain selective, keep position sizes measured and wait for a confirmed breakout or breakdown before adopting a stronger directional view.

In our Relative Rotation Graphs® analysis, we compared various sectors against the CNX500 (Nifty 500 Index), which represents over 95% of the free-float market capitalisation of all listed stocks.

The Relative Rotation Graph (RRG) shows that the Nifty Media, Auto and Realty indices are in the leading quadrant. These sectors may relatively outperform the broader benchmark, the Nifty 500 Index.

The Nifty Pharma Index is in the weakening quadrant but is showing an improvement in relative momentum. The Midcap 100 Index is also in the weakening quadrant and may see some continued slowdown in its relative performance.

The Nifty Infrastructure and Energy indices remain in the lagging quadrant. The Metal and PSE indices are also in the lagging quadrant but are showing a sharp improvement in relative momentum against their benchmark.

The Nifty Financial Services, Nifty Bank, IT, Services Sector and PSU Bank indices are in the improving quadrant. Among these, the IT Index is showing strong rotation and is likely to continue doing so.

(Important Note: RRG charts show the relative strength and momentum of a group of stocks. In the above chart, they show relative performance against the Nifty 500 Index (broader markets) and should not be used directly as buy or sell signals.)

Several Indian stocks are set to see heightened trading activity on Monday as the MSCI rebalancing changes announced on August 13 are scheduled to be implemented on August 31, with the revised weights becoming effective on September 1 (Tuesday). The final 30 minutes of trading on Monday are expected to be particularly important as market participants adjust their positions ahead of the changes.

According to a report by Nuvama Alternative and Quantitative Research, the rebalancing includes additions and exclusions from the MSCI index, along with changes in the weights of several stocks.

Stocks added to MSCI

Laurus Labs, Lenskart, Adani Energy Solutions and Groww are set to be included in the index, which is expected to result in inflows into the four stocks.

Laurus Labs is expected to see inflows of $598 million, while Lenskart could attract $352 million. Adani Energy Solutions is estimated to see $310 million in inflows, while Groww could receive $256 million. The four stocks together are expected to account for total inflows of $1.516 billion.

Stocks excluded from MSCI
Three stocks are set to be removed from the index, potentially resulting in outflows. Balkrishna Industries is expected to see outflows of $169 million, followed by SBI Cards at $143 million and Astral at $138 million.The three stocks together are expected to see total outflows of $450 million.

Stocks with higher weights

MSCI is also increasing the weights of seven stocks, which is expected to bring additional inflows.

Eternal is expected to see the largest inflow at $674 million, followed by Adani Enterprises at $202 million and Adani Ports at $77 million. JSW Energy is expected to attract $34 million, while Adani Power could see inflows of $28 million. GMR Airports and Swiggy are expected to see inflows of $22 million and $13 million, respectively.

Together, these weight increases are expected to bring total inflows of $1.050 billion.

Stocks with lower weights

The rebalancing will also reduce the weights of five stocks, potentially leading to outflows.

Reliance Industries is expected to see the largest outflow at $523 million, followed by Jio Financial at $61 million. Indian Hotels is expected to see an outflow of $32 million, while AB Capital and Colgate could see outflows of $21 million and $16 million, respectively.

The five stocks together are expected to see total outflows of $653 million.

Market outlook for the week

According to Sudeep Shah of SBI Securities, Nifty is trading below all its crucial moving averages. However, most of these moving averages have turned flat, reflecting the lack of a decisive trend amid the prevailing sideways momentum. Momentum indicators and oscillators are also pointing towards continued consolidation.

The daily RSI has remained in the sideways zone for the past 13 trading sessions, while the Stochastic is also oscillating within a range. With momentum indicators failing to provide a clear directional signal, price levels now hold the key to the next move.

This brings the focus back to the crucial support zone. Going ahead, the 24,000–23,950 zone is likely to act as an important support for the index, with the prior swing low and upward-sloping trendline placed in this region. A sustained move below 23,950 could trigger further correction towards 23,700 in the short term.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)

The Stock Exchange of Thailand will list 28 new depositary receipts linked to international stocks and ETFs, covering markets in Asia, the United States and Europe. The move is part of SET’s effort to broaden investment choices for domestic investors and strengthen Thailand’s capital-market competitiveness against other Asian exchanges.

The new listings span high‑growth sectors such as semiconductors, AI, electronics, clean energy, infrastructure, and aerospace. Asian names include Chinese chip‑equipment makers Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment Inc and Hua Hong Grace Semiconductor while U.S. heavyweights Dell, Intel, and Palantir, as well as Europe’s Airbus, are also part of the lineup. This move reflects a broader regional trend of exchanges offering easier access to global blue‑chip equities.

These new depositary receipts aim to provide investors with broader access to global markets, allowing them to diversify their portfolios with greater ease. By linking to international stocks and ETFs, investors can tap into growth opportunities across different regions, benefiting from the economic developments in Asia, the United States, and Europe. This initiative is part of the Stock Exchange of Thailand’s efforts to enhance market offerings and meet the growing demand for international investment options among Thai investors.

Key figures / indicators: 28 new DRs; underlying assets include international equities and ETFs across Asia, the US and Europe.

Why it matters: Easier access to global assets could deepen Thailand’s capital market while allowing domestic investors to diversify without opening overseas brokerage accounts. It also reflects a broader shift in SET strategy toward keeping Thai savings and trading activity within the local financial system as investors increasingly look beyond domestic equities.

LOS ANGELES — ServiceTitan shares collapsed Wednesday after the trades-software company beat fiscal second-quarter estimates and still told Wall Street the next quarter would be smaller than the last.

The stock traded at $57.32 around 12:06 p.m. Eastern, down $24.27, or 29.74%, from Tuesday’s close of $81.58. Intraday it printed as low as about $55.55. Volume ran many times a typical session. Barron’s, citing Dow Jones data, said a close near $57 would be the largest one-day percentage drop since the December 2024 listing and the weakest finish since mid-May.

The numbers that went out Tuesday after the close looked fine in isolation. Revenue for the quarter ended July 31 was $292.8 million, up 21% from a year earlier and above a consensus near $286 million. Adjusted earnings were 40 cents a share versus 35 cents expected. Platform revenue rose 22% to $284.5 million. Gross transaction volume — invoices run through the system, the company’s proxy for customer sales — increased 17% to $26.8 billion. Non-GAAP operating income was $44.4 million. Non-GAAP free cash flow was $50.5 million. The GAAP operating loss narrowed to $27.6 million; the net loss was $24.9 million, or 26 cents a share.

Then came the guide. Fiscal third-quarter revenue was put at $285 million to $287 million. The midpoint sits under the roughly $288 million FactSet estimate and under the quarter just reported. Full-year fiscal 2027 revenue was raised only a notch, to $1.139 billion–$1.144 billion from $1.130 billion–$1.140 billion, a touch above the Street’s $1.138 billion. Non-GAAP operating income for the year was guided at $152 million to $154 million; for the third quarter, $29 million to $30 million.

That combination — beat the last quarter, miss the next one’s sales print by a few million, and freeze growth in the mid-teens for the back half — is how a software name with a rich multiple loses a third of its value before lunch. Robert W. Baird cut its target to $85 from $101. Other desks still carried Buy ratings and targets clustered near $100, which only underlined how far the tape had run ahead of a one-quarter wobble.

Co-founder and Chief Executive Ara Mahdessian tried to keep the story on artificial intelligence. “Our strong momentum delivering the Agentic Operating System to the Trades resulted in 21% year-over-year revenue growth and over $50 million of non-GAAP free cash flow this quarter,” he said in the release. “Delivering this Agentic Operating System to our customers and leveraging AI to further enhance our organizational velocity are once in a lifetime opportunities to execute against.”

President and co-founder Vahe Kuzoyan said execution on Max, the company’s agentic product, was ahead of plan. “We exceeded our goal of doubling Max locations during Q2,” he said. “As a result of strong execution with existing customers and progress with select new customers, we now expect to end this fiscal year with over 700 enrolled Max locations.” The company said it had doubled enrolled Max sites toward just over 100 earlier in the year and would double again. Research spending rose about 38% to staff that push. Net dollar retention stayed above 110%. Active customers were about 10,800; more than 2,000 book more than $100,000 a year.

Chief Financial Officer Dave S. told analysts the third-quarter step-down had a calendar excuse: one fewer business day than a year earlier. Max revenue, he said, should start to show more clearly in the fourth quarter. He also said the firm’s habit is to beat its own midpoint by $9 million to $10 million when usage and GTV run hot — and that the inverse can happen, which is what occurred in the second quarter’s mix. Incremental margins of 25% are now framed as a yearly floor, not a stretch goal; the company pointed to 33% incremental margins in the current year plan.

Investors heard something else: management is narrowing, not widening. The company said it is concentrating on existing commercial trades and residential roofing rather than opening new verticals, so it can upsell Max instead of chasing logos. A chief revenue officer change traveled with the print. For a platform sold as the operating system of HVAC, plumbing and electrical shops, a CRO exit plus a sequential revenue dip reads as a sales-engine question, not a rounding error.

ServiceTitan exists because those shops still run on clipboards. Founders Mahdessian and Kuzoyan, sons of trades owners, built scheduling, dispatch, invoicing and payments for an industry that invoices tens of billions through the product each quarter. Subscriptions were $212.4 million, up 22%. Usage revenue was $72.1 million, up 24%. Platform gross margin was about 79%. That is a real business. It is also a business whose growth rate is being asked to fund AI headcount while GTV growth cools from the mid-20s toward the high teens.

The 52-week range of about $54 to $120 is the map. Wednesday’s print sat on the floor of that range because software buyers punish guidance that does not compound. A $6 million raise to the full-year sales box does not offset a quarter guided below both consensus and the prior period. Insider sales of tens of millions of dollars over recent months did not help the tape.

None of that makes the beat fake. Cash flow of $50 million and a 21% top line are not distress. They are not the 30% growth the multiple once assumed, either. Mahdessian called the agentic stack a once-in-a-lifetime chance. The market priced the next 90 days as a lifetime of slower invoices. The third-quarter report will decide which reading lasts.

United Natural Foods UNFI -0.55%decrease; down pointing triangle expects profit and sales to rise this fiscal year as it onboards further business from new and existing customers.

The forecast came as the company, a major food distributor for Whole Foods, swung to a fourth-quarter profit despite lower sales.

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While tariffs can end up hitting consumers in the pocket, there are other impacts on households.

Import taxes can complicate trade for businesses that have cross-border supply. As well as the higher costs, the uncertainty created by the trade war could put off investment plans and stunt job creation.

Saunders suggests the biggest impact on households may not just be through prices, but job losses instead.

“If you’re, let’s say, a bespoke furniture producer in BC [British Columbia], you’re now facing a 50% tariff on your exports to the US – that could really shut the business down. I think that would be more the direct impact on households as opposed to these retaliatory measures.”

Canada’s forest industry employs almost 200,000 people and has called on the government to boost domestic demand through federal housing programs to make greater use of Canadian wood, though it admits “no support package can replace reliable access to our largest export market”.

When it comes to US, consumers are unlikely to see much of a difference in terms of the cost of living as result of this latest battle with Canada, but frictions to trade can have longer-term economic impacts.

Such tensions also feed into concerns over the free-trade agreement between Canada, the US and Mexico, known as the USMCA. Both Canada and Mexico have said they want the USMCA extended for another 16 years, but the US has said it will not renew in its current form.

Despite the deal remaining operational, tariffs risk putting off talks in the near future, creating more uncertainty for cross-border trade.

John Iselin, associate director at the Budget Lab at Yale, estimates the cost will only be about $3 per American household on average, but when taking into account Trump’s wider trade war with the rest of the world, and particularly China, the added costs rise to about $1,000 for the average family.

“It’s hard to view this particular instance with Canada in isolation because we’ve had similar interactions with a range of other countries, all of which makes doing business harder. It’s just another in a series of tariff shocks.”

Logistics company OneRail is launching a platform using Nvidia‘s artificial intelligence software to help retailers make faster decisions on the most efficient delivery options at scale, CNBC has learned.

The new platform, called OmniStar, allows retailers to use AI to evaluate all of their delivery options and identify the best one for each individual order, using OneRail’s proprietary data.

The last-mile delivery company told CNBC the new platform will allow smaller companies to deliver at scale and improve margins to compete with the retail giants of the world, including Amazon and Walmart.

As e-commerce grows, retailers have had to keep up with surging demand and invest in nimble supply chains to optimize their efficiency. But those manual processes are often fragmented across the retailer and the logistics businesses.

“If you don’t have the ability to make lightning-fast decisions, you’re giving up margin,” OneRail CEO Bill Catania told CNBC. “Last-mile fulfillment is expensive.”

Where choosing the best routing for a package may have previously taken 20 minutes, OneRail said its platform can do it in 2½ minutes leveraging AI. That time saved means retailers can operate larger, faster and more precise supply chains, Catania said.

“That’s where the artificial intelligence comes in. It’s making those kinds of decisions extremely rapidly, and so to do that, that’s where the Nvidia hardware and the software comes in and really makes this thing work at scale,” said David Daeschler, the head of AI at OneRail.

Daeschler said the company began partnering with Nvidia three years ago to explore ways to incorporate AI into the logistics process.

“The result is a real-time decision layer that can route an order to the right carrier and delivery mode at the right cost, rather than relying on static rules or manual planning,” said Azita Martin, Nvidia’s vice president and general manager of retail and consumer packaged goods.

Catania said OneRail’s proprietary data, which includes a network of more than 12 million drivers and over 1,000 logistics partners, is being used to train the AI on the most efficient routes and delivery options.

“It’s for the benefit of them and us: We operate more efficiently. They save money and provide a better customer experience,” Daeschler said.

The company told CNBC its platform has already been deployed with some customers, including a large tire distributor that saw OmniStar save the company a run rate of $40 million over three years because it’s able to use its resources more efficiently.

It’s also estimating the platform will surpass $6 billion in gross merchandise volume in the fourth quarter.

Nvidia’s Martin said the platform will allow retailers to make much faster decisions.

“For retailers, the bigger value is the ability to evaluate more scenarios, respond more quickly as conditions change and improve delivery economics without sacrificing service,” Martin said.

OneRail said the platform could help smaller retailers compete more effectively on delivery speed and efficiency.

OneRail announced a partnership earlier this year with FedEx to bring same-day delivery services to all of its customers, joining a rush of retailers trying to offer their customers the best and fastest delivery options. That partnership will now allow OneRail to better work with smaller businesses as well, Catania added.

“We’re kind of doing for delivery what ChatGPT and Anthropic have done for words – it all works the same way,” Daeschler said. “They give people more access to knowledge. We’re giving people access to being able to do delivery in a way that’s affordable. … That’s all done based on original models, training on data that we have, just like words on the internet.”