On one side of Dalal Street, foreign investors have been heading for the exit. On the other, a long line of companies is waiting to sell shares to the public. Together, they make 2026 an unusual year for India’s stock markets.Start with the market most people follow. The Nifty 50 closed at 22,555.75 on October 5, according to BlinkX1, after falling in the four sessions before that. A week earlier, on September 29, the index was down 13.62% for 2026, as Business Today reported2. That puts the Nifty in what is called correction territory, a term used when an index falls 10% or more from its recent peak.The fall has come alongside heavy selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs). As BlinkX reported1, FPIs sold Indian shares worth Rs 45,537 crore in September, and another Rs 19,205 crore in just the first five days of October. This came after a short break in August, when they were net buyers of Rs 17,366 crore.Domestic investors have helped balance some of this selling. On October 5, for example, while FPIs sold shares worth Rs 4,699 crore, domestic institutional investors, such as mutual funds and insurance companies, were net buyers of Rs 5,182 crore, as per provisional data cited by BlinkX.IPO activity remains strong despite the downturnMeanwhile, a very different picture is emerging at another front of the market. The primary market, where companies raise money by selling new shares through initial public offerings (IPOs), is having one of its busiest years. According to the Free Press Journal3, 96 IPOs have raised over Rs 1.1 lakh crore so far in 2026, including 35 issues in September alone.And the queue is getting longer. Twelve more companies are preparing to launch IPOs in October, the Free Press Journal reported. Among them, Zetwerk plans to raise around Rs 5,000 crore, with its issue open from October 15 to 19, while Avaada Electro plans to raise Rs 7,600 crore. Smaller issues such as HD Fire Protect’s Rs 712 crore IPO and Fusion CX’s Rs 702 crore offering are also part of the October line-up, according to the report.The biggest name on the list is Jio Platforms. According to the Free Press Journal, Jio is all set to launch India’s largest IPO, with subscription scheduled between October 21 and 23. Speaking at the Jio IPO media meet on October 15, Uday Kotak, chairman of Kotak Investment Banking, who spoke on behalf of the bankers managing the issue, said it will raise Rs 30,188 crore at the upper end of the price band.Domestic investors continue to support IPO fundraisingSo why are IPOs moving ahead while the wider market slips? The Free Press Journal quoted Neha Agarwal, managing director and head of equity capital markets at JM Financial, and said domestic money continues to support IPO fundraising despite the ups and downs in the secondary market, where existing shares are bought and sold.At the same time, she said, investors are becoming more careful. They are looking more closely at valuations, profits and how companies are run. Companies that show clear earnings and price their shares reasonably are likely to draw more interest from big investors, she said, as per the Free Press Journal report.Market experts also believe India’s primary market can handle several large issues at the same time, as long as companies keep their pricing in check, the Free Press Journal reported. However, the report added that global uncertainty and volatile markets could still affect when companies launch their issues and how well they are subscribed.The coming weeks will put this two-track market to the test. With Jio and a dozen other companies seeking investors’ money in October, and foreign selling continuing into the month, the response to these issues will show how far domestic investors can keep the IPO wheels turning.References: