Mumbai, Oct. 27 -- The key equity benchmarks declined in afternoon trade as weakness in European markets and mixed Asian cues weighed on investor sentiment. The Nifty held above the 22,700 mark, while healthcare stocks extended their gains for a second consecutive trading session.

At 13:30 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 226.69 points or 0.31% to 73,380.06. The Nifty 50 index fell 52.45 points or 0.23% to 22,700.75.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index advanced 0.92% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 1.77%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,783 shares rose and 1,380 shares fell. A total of 235 shares were unchanged.

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of vol...