The key equity indices traded with major losses in the mid-morning trade, pausing a six-day winning streak driven by optimism surrounding Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. The cautious sentiment came as investors awaited Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s policy remarks at the Jackson Hole symposium later in the day.
The Nifty traded above the 25,000 level. Media shares advanced after declining for previous two consecutive trading sessions.
At 11:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slumped 518.28 points or 0.64% to 81,474.48. The Nifty 50 index fell 160.95 points or 0.64% to 24,922.65.
In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.06% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.13%.
The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,659 shares rose and 2,102 shares fell. A total of 219 shares were unchanged.
IPO Update:
The initial public offer (IPO) of Mangal Electrical Industries received bids for 1,37,54,000 shares as against 52,53,301 shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 11:15 IST on Friday (22 August 2025). The issue was subscribed 2.62 times.
Buzzing Index:
The Nifty Media index rose 1.12% to 1,656.80. The index shed 0.87% in the previous two trading sessions.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises (up 5.16%), Saregama India (up 2.75%), Network 18 Media & Investments (up 0.48%), PVR Inox (up 0.47%) added.
On the other hand, Nazara Technologies (down 3.91%), Tips Music (down 1.03%) and Dish TV India (down 0.58%) edged lower.
Stocks in Spotlight:
Hikal slipped 1.16% after the company announced that it has received a warning letter from the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) for its Jigani facility in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
R Systems International surged 11.37% after the company has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Novigo Solutions, strengthening its product engineering and full-stack agentic-AI capabilities.
Global Markets:
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed Friday as investors await U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech at the central bank’s annual economic symposium, which could offer clues into the path of interest rates.
Japan’s core inflation rate cooled to 3.1% in July, declining from 3.3% the month before as rice inflation continued to ease. Headline inflation in the country also dropped to 3.1%, coming down from 3.3% in June and marking its lowest since November 2024.
Overnight stateside, stocks fell broadly Thursday, with the S&P 500 sliding for the fifth day in a row.
The broad-market index shed 0.4% and closed at 6,370.17, while the Nasdaq Composite slid 0.34% and settled at 21,100.31. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 152.81 points, or 0.34%, ending at 44,785.50.
U.S. business activity picked up pace in August, led by a resurgent manufacturing sector that saw the strongest growth in orders in 18 months, a purchasing managers survey showed on Thursday. S&P Global's flash U.S. Composite PMI Output Index, which tracks the manufacturing and services sectors, increased to 55.4 this month, the highest level since December, from 55.1 in July. A reading above 50 indicates expansion in the private sector.
Meanwhile, the number of Americans filing new applications for jobless benefits rose by the most in about three months last week and the number of people collecting unemployment relief in the prior week climbed to the highest level in nearly four years, signaling recent labor market softness continued into August.
The data may also add to the argument for the Federal Reserve to lower interest rates at its next meeting in about four weeks.