Mumbai, May 19 -- The headline equity benchmarks traded near the flatline with some negative bias in early afternoon trade, as investor sentiment remained weak after Moody's downgraded the US credit outlook and mixed economic signals from China. IT shares extended losses for the two consecutive trading sessions. The Nifty traded below the 25,000 level

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, shed 53.81 points or 0.07% to 82,277.07. The Nifty 50 index fell 9.90 points or 0.04% to 25,010.40.

The broader market outperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index rose 0.67% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index jumped 1.15%.

The market breadth was strong. On the BSE, 2,661 shares rose and 1,274 shares fell. A total of 194...