Mumbai: India's benchmark indices ended lower on Wednesday, as the rise in crude oil prices amid the intensifying conflict in West Asia triggered fresh selling across the board.

The NSE Nifty50 declined 191.45 points, or 0.79%, to close at 23,996.25, slipping below the crucial 24,000 mark. The BSE Sensex dropped 715.06 points, or 0.92%, to settle at 76,755.05.

Midcap and smallcap stocks also fell, with the Nifty Midcap 150 falling 1.06% and the Nifty Smallcap 250 losing 1.31%.

Most sector indices ended lower with Nifty Bank declining 1.2% and Nifty IT dropping 1.4%. Bucking the overall weakness, Nifty FMCG Index went up by 0.6%, while NSE Auto Index was marginally up by 0.2%.

Brent crude rose 3.7% to trade around $94.40 per barrel.