Mumbai, Aug. 18 -- The key equity barometers traded with modest cuts in the early afternoon trade, weighed down by a rise in crude oil prices following the expiry of the US-Iran ceasefire and growing uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The Nifty traded below the 24,250 mark. PSU bank shares extended losses for the fourth consecutive trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 325.69 points or 0.42% to 77,402.47. The Nifty 50 index lost 72.15 points or 0.30% to 24,216.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The BSE 150 MidCap Index shed 0.17% and the BSE 250 SmallCap Index rose 0.15%.

The market breadth was negative. On the BSE, 1,845 shares rose and 2,262 shares f...