Markets up, but demat openings moderate in July in continuing trend

1.8 mn new accounts added last month, compared to 2.7 million during first half of this year

Equity markets made gained in July, but new dematerialised (demat) accounts did not see much growth.

About 1.8 million new accounts--needed for holding shares in an electronic format--were opened with two depositories, CDSL and NSDL, to take the total to 98.33 million. The number was slightly more than 1.77 million in June, but nearly 30 per cent lower than the average 2.7 million new accounts opened during the first half of calendar 2022.

The Nifty 50 index rallied 8.7 per cent in July, snapping three straight months of losses. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) who were net sellers since October turned