Mumbai, Oct. 19 -- The key equity benchmarks extended their losses in afternoon trade. The Nifty 50 slipped below the 22,900 mark, reflecting continued weakness in the domestic market. Selling pressure was broad-based, with all sectoral indices trading in the red except the Nifty PSU Bank index. Weakness in banking shares dragged the benchmark indices lower, while elevated crude oil prices added to investor concerns over inflation and the potential impact on India's import bill.

At 13:30 IST, the S&P BSE Sensex tanked 929.19 points or 1.24% to 73,800.08. The Nifty 50 index declined 277.05 points or 1.2% to 22,869.10.

In the broader market, the BSE 150 MidCap Index declined 0.69% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index fell 1.06%.

The market bre...