(Updates at market open)

Dec 19 (Reuters) - Indian shares dived on Thursday, led

by U.S.-rate sensitive information technology stocks, after the

Federal Reserve projected fewer interest rate cuts in 2025,

citing sticky inflation and strength in the world's largest

economy.

The NSE Nifty 50 fell 1% to 23,969.25 points as of

09:15 a.m. IST, while the BSE Sensex dropped 0.9% to

79,441.58.

Both the benchmark indexes have lost over 3% so far this

week and are headed for their first weekly decline in five.

The Fed delivered a 25-basis-point rate cut overnight, as

was widely expected, but forecast just two

quarter-percentage-point reductions in 2025, which is half a

percentage point less than officials had anticipated in

September.

Rate cuts in the U.S. typically help emerging market assets,

such as Indian equities, as they boost foreign inflows.

The more domestically-focussed smallcaps and

midcaps, as well as all 13 major subsectors

retreated in early trade.

IT firms, which earn a significant chunk of their

revenue from the U.S., led losses with a 2% plunge.

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee and Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru;

Editing by Sumana Nandy and Mrigank Dhaniwala)