The trend of FII selling in Indian equities continued into December, with net outflows reaching Rs 656 crore so far. However, the pace of selling has slowed considerably compared to the more aggressive outflows observed in October and November.For 2024 till 27th December, FIIs net sold equity for Rs 1,19,277 crore through the exchanges.While early December saw occasional buying, FIIs turned sellers again.Interestingly, the FIIs invested Rs 1,20,932 crore through the primary market, making them net investors in India so far this year.“An important characteristic about FII investment is that they have been consistent investors of equity through the primary market,” highlights V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services noting that in December alone, FIIs invested Rs 17,331 crores in the primary market.“The selling through exchanges is mainly due to the high valuations and investing through the primary market is mainly due to the fair valuations,” he added.Data from the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL) reveals that the debt market too has seen significant FII interest, with investments totaling Rs 112,409 crore so far this year.Also read: 12 stocks with record dates for dividends, bonuses, splits, rights issue next week. Do you own?Looking ahead to early 2025, a potential resurgence of selling pressure in the equity market.“In early 2025 FIIs may again turn sellers into equity since the dollar has been appreciating (dollar index is above 108) and the US 10-year bond yields are attractive at around 4.4%,” believes Vijayakumar.He also noted that FIIs are likely to return as buyers when there are clear signs of growth and earnings recovery in the Indian economy.(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times)