March 4 (Reuters) - Indian shares extended their slump at the open on Wednesday, as escalating U.S.-Israel clashes with Iran lifted oil to a 19-month high, disrupted Middle East energy shipments and stoked fears of a prolonged conflict.
The Nifty 50 was down 1.92% at 24,388.8 and the BSE Sensex shed 2.13% to 78,528.82 as of 9:15 a.m. IST.
Domestic markets were closed on Tuesday for a local holiday.
The benchmarks have lost about 2.5% each over the past two sessions. [.BO]
The Indian rupee slid to a record low against the dollar while bond yields jumped as Middle East conflict kept oil prices elevated.
Brent crude futures rose to $82.77 per barrel, the highest since July 2024, and have gained nearly 17% in four sessions. Higher oil prices and trade disruptions weigh on large importers of the commodity such as India. [O/R]
(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru; Editing by Sumana Nandy and Sonia Cheema)
