India, March 30 -- The key equity benchmarks traded with major losses in the early afternoon, as the escalating war between Iran and the U.S.-Israel alliance reignited a surge in crude oil prices, weighing on global market sentiment. The Nifty traded below the 22,500 level. Private Bank shares extended losses for two trading sessions.

At 11:30 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex plunged 1,214.53 points or 1.65% to 72,368.69. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 347.65 points or 1.52% to 22,471.95.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index fell 2.07% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index shed 2.28%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 855 shares rose and 3,258 shares fell. A total of 191 shares were u...