Mumbai, March 19 -- March could end up seeing record selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in India's cash market if the current daily pace continues over the remaining eight sessions of the month. Since the start of the West Asia conflict on February 28, FPIs have net sold shares worth Rs.74,795.57 crore in the month through March 17, according to National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) data. That works out to an average daily sale of Rs.6,799.59 crore over 11 sessions of the month. If the FPI selling for the remaining eight days continues with the same intensity, March would clock Rs.1.29 lakh crore, higher than the record Rs.1.14 lakh crore FPI outflows seen in October 2024. The average daily FPI outflow in October 2024 was Rs.5,175 crore . The record selling that month was induced by rising US bond yields, over concerns of global tariff wars following a likely Republican victory in the US presidential elections. Donald Trump went on to win the election, beating Democrat candidate Kamala Harris. The generic 10-year US bond rose to 4.28% that month, up 13% from September 2024 , resulting in outsized FPI outflows from India to the safety of the US dollar. March has been marked by the US-Iran conflict, which has effectively choked oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz and disrupted production, fuelling a 38% surge in Brent crude to $100.21 a barrel as of 16 March. The crude rally has impacted oil-dependent economies like India, which imports almost 90% of its 5.5 million barrels of oil consumed daily. This has led to the rupee falling 1.53% to 92.38 per US dollar this month through 17 March, and sparked fears among FPIs that higher crude prices could erode corporate earnings and depress share prices. "The FPI selling is totally outsized, in our view," said Nitin Jain, chief executive officer and director, Kotak Mahindra Asset Management Singapore. Jain said that if one considers a one-year forward Rs.1,400 earnings per share for Nifty, the valuation currently stands at 16.84 times FY28 earnings. The 10-year historic valuation has been around 20 times, implying a near 20% upside potential from Tuesday's Nifty closing of 23,581.15. "FPIs are already underweight India and to my mind the valuations are compelling," added Jain, who expects the war to be a "transient" event. Slashing its December 2026 Nifty target to 24,900 from 29,300 previously, Japanese brokerage Nomura noted in its "India Equity Strategy" that an additional 5% correction on top of the 8% over the past two weeks was a "distinct possibility." It stated that domestic equity inflow growth had slowed down in the recent past and ".... valuation threshold for FIIs are lower, aggravated by concerns about impact of AI and oil prices." However, it added that its base case was for an eventual resolution (of the conflict) which would ensure supplies and lower oil prices. Furthermore, concerns arising from AI were "premature and overdone." "Therefore, a correction beyond 5% from current levels (23151.10 on Friday) should present a buying opportunity from a long-term perspective, in our view," Nomura noted....