As per provisional closing data, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex slipped 259.52 points or 0.41% at 62,979.37. The Nifty 50 index lost 105.775 points or 0.56% at 18,665.50.

The broader market underperformed the headline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 1.24% while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 1.17%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,174 shares rose and 2,289 shares fell. A total of 147 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, fell 2.70% to 11.24.

IPO Update:

The initial public offer (IPO) of HMA Agro Industries received bids for 96.60 lakh shares as against 60.54 lakh shares on offer, according to stock exchange data at 15:45 IST on Friday (23 June 2023). The issue was subscribed 1.60 times.

The issue opened for bidding on Tuesday (20 June 2023) and it will close on Friday (23 June 2023). The price band of the IPO is fixed at Rs 555-585 per share. An investor can bid for a minimum of 25 equity shares and in multiples thereof.

Buzzing Index:

The Nifty Metal index tumbled 2.48% to 6,037.20. The index advanced 0.05% in the past trading session.

Adani Enterprises (down 6.98%), APL Apollo Tubes (down 4.34%), National Aluminium Company (down 2.98%), Hindalco Industries (down 2.93%), Jindal Steel & Power (down 2.79%), Welspun Corp (down 2.24%), Vedanta (down 1.59%), Tata Steel (down 1.58%), Jindal Stainless (down 1.45%) and Steel Authority of India (down 1.12%).

Vedanta fell 1.59%. Vedanta clarified that media reports indicating that the company is selling its Sterlite Copper Plant, Thoothukudi are wrong, baseless and incorrect. Sterlite Copper is a national asset and had contributed to 40% of India's copper. As the Country has become a net importer of copper, which has adversely impacted inter-alia the downstream and ancillary industries and hence, there has been a growing demand for Vedanta-Sterlite Copper to restart its operations.

Adani Enterprises tumbled 6.98%. AdaniConneX, a joint venture between Adani Enterprises and EdgeConneX, has executed a $213 million senior debt facility with participation from international banks to finance its under-construction data center portfolio of 67 MW in Noida and Chennai.

Stocks in Spotlight:

Shares of nine IT companies fell by 4.26% to 0.46% after US-based IT major Accenture guided for lower-than-expected fourth quarter growth.

L&T Technology Services (down 4.26%), LTIMindtree (down 1.44%), Mphasis (down 1.20%), Infosys (down 1.27%), Persistent Systems (down 1.47%), TCS (down 0.83%), Wipro (down 0.56%), Coforge (down 1.18%) and Tech Mahindra (down 0.46%) tumbled.

Accenture reported financial results for the third quarter of fiscal 2023, ended 31 May 2023, with revenues of $16.6 billion, an increase of 3% in U.S. dollars and 5% in local currency over the same period last year. Accenture marginally trimmed the upper end of the guidance for FY23 to 8-9% from 8-10% and expects growth to be in the range of 2-6% in Q4FY23.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) dropped 3.51%. A meeting of the board of directors of the company will be held on 28 June 2023 to consider the various modalities for capital infusion including rights issue, for achieving energy transition, net zero and energy security objectives.

Eros International Media tumbled 19.97% after SEBI barred the company, its promoters, managing director Sunil Arjan Lulla and CEO Pradeep Kumar Dwivedi from the securities markets until further notice alleged fund diversion. Apart from Eros International and its two senior executives, the two promoter entities Eros Worldwide FZ LLC and Eros Digital have also been restrained by the market regulator.

“The investigation is currently in progress and a forensic auditor has also been appointed to conduct an examination into the books of accounts of the company,” Sebi stated in its order.

The enquiry was started after financial statements for FY20 showed impairment from content advances and film rights, along with other advances and goodwill, amounting to Rs 1,553.52 crore. Also, in the same year, the company wrote off trade receivables to the extent of Rs 519.98 crore.

Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) fell 3.12% after the cancellation of the proposed mock trading session for its new platform.

"The exchange had proposed mock trading session on 22 June 2023, from 05.00 p.m. to 11.30 p.m. which stands cancelled," MCX said in a notification 22 June 2023. This is the second time in a week that MCX has cancelled a mock trading session for its new platform. The previous session was cancelled on 19 June 2023.

LIC Housing Finance slipped 3.49%. The company announced the appointment of T Adhikari as its chief operating officer from 22 June 2023.

PNB Housing Finance dropped 3.42%. The board of directors of PNB Housing Finance approved issuance of non - convertible debentures in tranches aggregating up to Rs 5,000 crore on private placement basis.

Global Market:

Markets in Europe and Asia declined on Friday as investors look to inflation data out of Japan and Singapore, as well as flash estimates from the au Jibun bank on Japan's manufacturing and services activity. Mainland Chinese markets are closed for a public holiday Friday.

Japan's business activity expanded at a slower rate in June, according to flash estimates by the au Jibun bank. The composite purchasing managers index fell to 52.3 in June, compared to 54.3 in May. Japan's inflation rate slowed in May. Japan's headline inflation rate came in at 3.2% in May, easing from the 3.5% recorded in April. Japan's core inflation rate in May eased slightly to 3.2% year-on-year, lower than April's 3.4% but still above the BOJ's 2% target.

US stocks rose on Thursday as Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell wrapped up his congressional testimony.

Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell faced multiple questions Thursday about where interest rates are heading, but he said the focus instead should be on how quickly the Fed is moving. Policymakers, he insisted, are still committed to using rates to bringing down inflation, but are going to move more slowly than they had been during an aggressive run of hikes going back to March 2022.