Mumbai, Sept. 2 -- The key equity barometers traded with major cuts in the early afternoon trade. The Nifty traded below the 23,850 mark. Realty shares extended losses for the sixth consecutive trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex tanked 649.03 points or 0.84% to 76,295.25. The Nifty 50 index lost 228.75 points or 0.95% to 23,828.10.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index fell 1.05% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index shed 0.85%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,475 shares rose and 2,648 shares fell. A total of 221 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose 2.89% to 11.83. The Nifty 29 September 202...