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Domestic equities traded lower on Wednesday following fresh escalation in tensions between the US and Iran, with benchmark indices declining up to 1 per cent during morning trade.

Sensex fell as much as 816 points or 1.09 per cent to hit an intraday low of 73,833 in early trade. Similarly, Nifty declined 200 points or 0.86 per cent to touch an intraday low of 23,280.

Sectoral indices traded largely in the red, with technology stocks emerging as the biggest drag. Nifty IT slumped nearly 4 per cent, while the Nifty MidSmall IT & Telecom index fell close to 2 per cent. Realty, financial services, PSU banking and media stocks were also under pressure.

Category-wise, mid-cap and small-cap indices slipped up to 1 per cent, while India VIX jumped more than 8 per cent.

Among Nifty constituents, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) plunged around 6 per cent, while Tech Mahindra, Infosys and HCLTech declined up to 4 per cent. Bajaj Finserv, Axis Bank and Shriram Finance were among the top losers of the benchmark index.

According to market experts, rising crude prices and geopolitical uncertainty remain the biggest near-term risks for domestic equities despite positive global cues, with elevated oil prices continuing to keep investors cautious.

In addition, investor sentiment remained weak amid uncertainty surrounding a potential US-Iran peace deal, while fresh escalation in Gulf tensions further weighed on markets as diplomatic efforts between Washington and Tehran showed limited progress.

International benchmark Brent crude increased more than 1 per cent to $97.16 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped by 2.47 per cent to trade around $96 per barrel.

Asian markets traded mixed, with Japan’s Nikkei surging around 3 per cent, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped nearly 2 per cent and Indonesia’s Jakarta Composite declined about 4 per cent.

In the US, Wall Street ended largely flat, with the S&P 500 edging up 0.13 per cent and the Nasdaq gaining 0.03 per cent.