New Delhi: Owing to higher repatriation by foreign investors and Indian businesses increasingly investing abroad, net foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows to India decreased to $0.96 billion in 2024-25 and has remained low at $6.95 billion in the year ended March 2026, the Union government said on Tuesday (July 28), reported Deccan Herald.According to data furnished by minister of state Pankaj Chaudhary in Rajya Sabha, while net FDI equity investment in India was $27.99 billion in 2022-23, it decreased to $10.13 billion in 2023-24 and further fell a billion dollar mark in 2024-25.“The recent trend in net FDI inflows is associated with increased repatriation/disinvestment by foreign investors and rising Overseas Direct Investment (ODI) outflows,” said minister Chaudhary in a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha.The Union government claimed that ODI outflow on account of liberalised ODI rules notified in 2022 is enabling Indian entities to enhance their business footprints abroad. However, Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI M)) MP John Brittas said that the government’s explanation on the decreasing FDI trend is unconvincing.“It argues that rising repatriation reflects India’s success in delivering strong returns to foreign investors. If that were the whole story, investors would ordinarily retain and expand their investments in India while repatriating only their profits,” Brittas said.“Instead, the data reveal the opposite: repatriation and disinvestment are rising sharply while net FDI has collapsed. If India were truly becoming an increasingly attractive long-term investment destination, fresh investments should consistently outpace capital withdrawals, resulting in steadily growing net FDI. But the net FDI has shrunk so dramatically,” added Brittas.The Wire had earlier reported how in December 2025, net FDI had stayed negative for the fourth straight month as a rise in repatriation outpaced fresh inflows. Net FDI stood at negative $1.61 billion in December 2025 compared with negative $189 million in December 2024, reflecting higher outward remittances by foreign investors and increased overseas investment by Indian firms.Moreover, recent estimates from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) suggest that total amount of dollars flowing out of the country exceeded inflows by $30.8 billion in FY 26, a more than six-fold increase over FY25. India witnessed a balance of payments (BOP) surplus as recently as FY23 but took a hit, falling into negative territory from FY24 onwards.