New Delhi, June 4 -- The Nifty Bank index witnessed sharp volatility on Thursday, 4 June following weakness on Dalal Street as concerns over the escalating conflict in the Middle East, elevated crude oil prices and caution ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision weighed on investor sentiment.

The banking index slipped 0.6% to an intraday low of 53,829.40 before recovering nearly 1% from the day's low to touch an intraday high of 54,333.70. The index has remained under pressure in recent months, declining 1% over the past month, 7.6% in three months and 8.5% in six months. While certain largecap lenders like HDFC Bank, Punjab National Bank dragged the banking index; PSU lenders SBI, Bank of Baroda showed some resilie...