FIIs no factor in Sensex fall, no intent to check withdrawals: FM

New Delhi, Mar 4 (UNI) Finance Minister P Chidambaram today ruled out any check on withdrawals by the Foreign Institutional Investors, saying their presence in the Indian stock market was not sizeable enough to affect it.

Replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha on reasons for the recent fall in Sensex put up by BJP's Ms Sushma Swaraj, Mr Chidambaram said some of the factors that led to the fall was the sub-prime mortgage crisis in US, change in the monetary stance of developed countries, the expected US recession and the firming up of oil prices.

Moreover, Yen carry trade, the policy measures on offshore derivative instruments by the SEBI, the impact of primary market issues, relative variations in emerging markets etc also affected the Sensex behaviour, he said.

Ms Swaraj while attributing the Sensex fall to massive withdrawal by FIIs had wanted to know whether the Government was mulling any check on such withdrawals.

FIIs' share in the Indian market was too small to warrant such action, Mr Chidambaram said.

''FIIs investment is capped for different sectors by SEBI, and there was no proposal to ban them, nor to put any check on withdrawals by them,'' he said.

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