(Updates for morning trade)

By Bharath Rajeswaran

June 19 (Reuters) - India's equity benchmarks were

subdued on Thursday, as hawkish signals from the U.S. Federal

Reserve and persistent geopolitical turmoil in the Middle East

kept investors at bay.

The Nifty 50 held its ground at 24,816.85 and the

BSE Sensex was flat at 81,442.52, as of 9:57 a.m. IST.

The broader small-caps and mid-caps

fell 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.

Seven of the 13 major sectors declined, with IT companies

, which derive a significant portion of their revenue

from the United States, falling 1%.

Broader Asian markets declined on the day, with the MSCI

Asia ex-Japan index slipping 1.2% after the Fed

left interest rates steady but signalled a slower path for rate

cuts, projecting two reductions by year-end.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell noted that goods inflation could

accelerate over the summer, partly driven by tariffs linked to

U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies.

Concerns over escalating geopolitical risks stayed front and

centre in global markets.

The Israel-Iran conflict stretched into a seventh day, with

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejecting Trump's

demand for unconditional surrender. In response, Trump said his

patience had run out and warned of unpredictable consequences.

Trump's "all options on the table" remark has dialled up

fears of U.S. entry into the Israel-Iran conflict, casting a

long shadow over sentiment, said Akshay Chinchalkar, head of

research at Axis Securities.

Analysts noted that consistent buying by domestic

institutional investors over the past 22 sessions has acted a

key buffer, cushioning Indian markets from deeper declines.

Among individual stocks, Puravankara jumped 7% on

securing a contract worth 2.72 billion rupees ($31.43 million)

for a Bengaluru residential project.

Data Patterns gained 2% after CRISIL Ratings

upgraded the company's long-term credit rating on its bank

facilities to A+/Stable.

Aavas Financiers climbed 2% after Goldman Sachs

retained "buy" and forecast strong growth and profitability in

fiscal years 2025 to 2027.

($1 = 86.5400 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by

Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Mrigank Dhaniwala)