Updates for morning trade

By Bharath Rajeswaran and Vivek Kumar M

June 11 (Reuters) - Indian shares fell on Thursday as a fresh escalation in the Middle East conflict and a sharp jump in U.S. inflation triggered risk-off sentiment across global equities.

The benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI fell 0.31% at 23,144.4, while the BSE Sensex .BSESN shed 0.34% to 73,739.13, as of 9:45 a.m. IST.

Eleven of 16 major sectors logged losses. The broader small-caps .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 fell about 0.2% each.

The United States launched new strikes against multiple targets in Iran, the U.S. military said on Wednesday, as President Donald Trump vowed further attacks if no peace deal is secured.

The escalation pushed Brent crude futures LCOc1 up 1.9% to $95 per barrel. Asian equities .MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.6%.

"The combined impact of geopolitics, artificial intelligence and El-Nino risk has resulted in a subdued sentiment in Indian markets, particularly among foreign investors," said Surendra Goyal and Vijit Jain, analysts at Citi Research.

Foreign portfolio investors have offloaded domestic equities worth an unprecedented $30.4 billion in 2026 so far. The Nifty is down about 12% year-to-date.

Adding to the pressure, data released overnight showed that U.S. consumer inflation increased in May at its fastest pace in three years, raising the risk of a prolonged period of high interest rates.

Elevated U.S. rates tend to reduce the appeal of emerging market equities for foreign investors and may also weigh on U.S. growth, pressuring export-facing sectors such as information technology.

IT index .NIFTYIT fell 2% on the day, taking its 2026 losses to 27% so far, as concerns over AI-led disruption continued to weigh on earnings expectations.

"Sentiment remains cautious on the sector, with investors expressing frustration that IT companies have not invested sufficiently to manage and mitigate technology-related risks," said Yogesh Aggarwal, head of research of India at HSBC Securities and Capital Markets.

Bucking the broader weakness, Honasa Consumer HONA.NS gained 3% after multiple brokerages reiterated positive views following its investor day on Wednesday.