Mumbai, July 31 -- The domestic equity benchmarks traded with small cuts in early afternoon trade. The Nifty traded below the 24,850 mark. Realty shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, declined 75.34 points or 0.09% to 81,406.52. The Nifty 50 index lost 23.20 points or 0.10% to 24,833.35.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slipped 0.58% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index fell 0.36%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,494 shares rose and 2,270 shares fell. A total of 190 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's India VIX, a gauge of the market's expectation of volatility over the near term, rose ...