Mumbai, Aug. 22 -- The headline equity indices traded with significant losses in the afternoon trade as investors booked profits despite of optimism surrounding Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. Market sentiment remained cautious ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's policy remarks at the Jackson Hole symposium later in the day. Nifty slipped below 24,950 mark.

Metal, private bank and oil & gas shares declined while media and pharma stocks advanced.

At 13:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 490.75 points or 0.60% to 81,509.71. The Nifty 50 index fell 147.05 points or 0.59% to 24,936.75.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index dropped 0.11% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.09%.

The mar...