India's Share In Global Market Cap Falls Below 3% For The First Time In Four Years

India’s share in the global market capitalisation pie has come down below 3% after a gap of four years. On May 11, the country’s weight was 2.996%, the lowest since March 2022.The figure has fallen sharply from its peak of 4.71% in September 2024, which then eased to around 4.2% by the end of December 2024 and further declined to 3.5% by December 2025.

What’s Behind The Slide

The Indian markets have had a rough start to the year 2026. The country’s market cap has dropped 7% so far this year to currently stand at $4.91 trillion. The benchmark Sensex is down 11% year-to-date, while the Nifty has lost 9%. Interestingly, broader markets have held up better. The BSE MidCap 150 index has stayed largely flat, and the BSE SmallCap 250 has actually managed a modest 3% gain.

Crude oil prices remained above $100 per barrel for most of the time, which added to the worries, fuelled inflation concerns, and put fiscal pressure on the government.

Foreign investors have been the biggest drag. So far in 2026, they have pulled out nearly $21 billion from Indian equities.

Sentiment took another hit after Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged citizens to adopt work-from-home practices, switch to online meetings and use electric vehicles and railway transport more. He also asked people to avoid unnecessary foreign travel, overseas vacations, destination weddings, and gold purchases for at least a year, citing the ongoing global crisis and rising fuel costs. Modi flagged that the prolonged West Asia hostilities have disrupted supply chains, pushed up oil prices, and weighed on India's foreign exchange reserves.

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Asian Peers Gain Ground

While India has lost share, many Asian markets have moved in the opposite direction. China's share has climbed to 9.62% from 8.9% at the start of the year. Japan moved up to 5.22% from 5.1%. Taiwan saw a sharper rise, going from 2.2% to 2.91%, and South Korea jumped from 1.78% to 2.87%.

Even the US, which still dominates the global market cap mix, dipped slightly to 47.25% from 48%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng also softened a bit, slipping from 4.81% to 4.6%. The global market cap itself has risen to around $163.71 trillion from $151 trillion at the start of the year.

Sources:

Moneycontrol

Fortune India