Kenya, March 17 -- The key domestic benchmarks traded with slight losses in early afternoon trade amid the ongoing war between Iran, Israel and US, while crude oil prices hovered above $100 per barrel mark. Investors are also closely tracking movements in crude oil and gold prices. The Nifty traded near the 23,400 level. IT shares declined for sixth consecutive trading session.

At 12:25 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 22 points or 0.03% to 75,486.17. The Nifty 50 index fell 5.40 points or 0.02% to 23,400.60.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index added 0.33% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.05%.

Sellers outnumbered buyers. On the BSE, 2,100 shares rose and 1,925 shares...