Mumbai, June 18 -- The headline equity benchmarks traded with minor losses in early afternoon trade, amid ongoing geopolitical tensions between Israel and Iran. Market direction remains sensitive to geopolitical developments. Investors will closely monitor crude oil prices, developments from the G7 summit and the outcome of the upcoming U.S. Federal Reserve meeting.

The Nifty traded below the 24,800 level. IT stocks slipped after rising for three consecutive trading sessions.

At 12:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex declined 237.37 points or 0.29% to 81,344.77. The Nifty 50 index declined 66.35 points or 0.19% to 24,788.65.

In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index fell 0.32% and the S&P BSE Small-Cap index shed 0.1...