Concerned about foreign institutional investors (FII) pulling money out of Indian equities, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday said the outflows were driven mainly by the eurozone crisis.

?The current volatility in the stock market and withdrawal of FIIs have a direct correlation with the euro zone crisis,? Mukherjee said at a function here.

The minister, however, took some comfort from the increase in FDI so far this year. FDI increased 74% to $19.13 billion during April-September, from $11 billion in April-September 2010.

?Up to now, the indication is that FDI inflow is much better compared to last year, but FII outflow is an area of concern,? Mukherjee said. Foreign funds withdrew over R3,200 crore from the Indian securities market in November as the sovereign debt crisis worsened in the eurozone. The BSE benchmark Sensex index has lost over 19% so far this year.

Mukherjee said sustaining the economic growth was crucial in attracting global capital, even as he stressed on the need for fiscal consolidation. ?If India can continue to grow and acquire economic strength, we could be a source of stability for the world economy and provide the safe havens for restless global capital,? he said.

Mukherjee rooted for foreign investment in the organised retail sector, saying it would result in better returns for the farmers while providing competitive prices for the consumers. He urged political parties to rise above ?narrow political gains to support this crucial reform.

Mukherjee added that the economy would record a growth of 7.5% by March-end 2012. He said the growth rate for the first half of the current fiscal has been estimated at 7.3%. ?Going forward, I am confident that we will be recovering some of the loss in our growth momentum and may end the year over 7.5%,? he said, while speaking at the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit.

The Indian economy grew at its lowest level in two years at 6.9% in Q2.

The minister indicated that containing the fiscal deficit to the 4.6% target in 2011-12 was difficult. ?In the post-global crisis context, we have already begun the process of fiscal consolidation. Though it appears difficult, I am hopeful of maintaining the fiscal balance targeted for the current financial year end,? he said.