Indian stock market, July 20 -- Indian stock market indices-the Sensex and Nifty 50-closed lower on Friday, July 18, marking their third straight week of losses. The Nifty 50 slipped below the crucial 25,000 mark. Over the last three weeks, the Sensex has shed about 2,300 points, or nearly 3%, with the Nifty 50 posting a similar 3% decline.

On July 18, the Nifty 50 declined by 143 points, or 0.57%, to settle at 24,968.40, while the Sensex lost 502 points, or 0.61%, closing at 81,757.73.

The mid and small-cap segments, which had outperformed the benchmark indices in recent sessions, also faced selling pressure on Friday, with the BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices declining by 0.62% and 0.64%, respectively.

Investors saw a wipeout of almos...