Mumbai, April 4 -- The headline equity indices traded with significant losses in the early-afternoon trade, tracking a massive sell-off in U.S. markets triggered by U.S. President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariff announcement, which heightened concerns about a potential recession. The Nifty traded below the 23,000 level. IT shares extended losses for the second consecutive trading session.

At 12:28 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, tanked 684.71 points or 0.89% to 75,613.47. The Nifty 50 index dropped 259.95 points or 1.12% to 22,990.15.

The broader market underperformed the frontline indices. The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index slumped 2.75% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index declined 2.98%.

The market breadth was weak. On the BSE, 1,0...