Mumbai, March 30 -- The domestic equity benchmarks traded with deep cuts in the 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 22,550 mark. Realty shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.

At 12:26 ST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex plunged 1,043.46 points or 1.42% to 72,539.76. The Nifty 50 index tumbled 307.80 points or 1.35% to 22,510.80.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index fell 1.71% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index dropped 1.90%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 921 shares rose and 3,283 shares fell. A total of 194 sh...