Mumbai, Oct. 21 -- The domestic equity benchmarks ended lower for the second consecutive session on Wednesday, as rising crude oil prices and selling pressure in heavyweight stocks weighed on investor sentiment. The Nifty 50 closed below the 22,850 mark. The index surrendered early gains before recovering from their intraday lows on buying in IT stocks.

The broader market also slumped. Consumer durables, metal and auto shares tumbled while IT and cement shares bucked the weak market trend. Brent crude rose above $110 a barrel, heightening concerns over India's import bill, inflation and corporate margins.

The S&P BSE Sensex declined 143.21 points, or 0.19%, to 73,709.69, while the Nifty 50 lost 77.60 points, or 0.34%, to 22,811.35. In t...