Mumbai, March 28 -- The headline equity benchmarks traded with moderate losses in early afternoon trade, as investors remained cautious amid uncertainty surrounding US President Donald Trump's tariff plan. The Nifty traded below the 23,550 mark. Pharma shares extended losses for the fourth consecutive trading session.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, slipped 259.73 points or 0.34% to 77,348.12. The Nifty 50 index declined 66.35 points, or 0.28%, to 23,525.60.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index shed 0.27%, and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index added 0.17%.

The market breadth was positive. On the BSE, 1,973 shares rose and 1,873 shares fell. A total of 149 shares were unchanged.

Derivatives:

The NSE's Indi...