Mumbai, Aug. 7 -- The Indian benchmark indices opened with a gap-down on Friday, with Sensex losing over 400 points and Nifty sliding below the 24,600 level as oil prices surged amid renewed concerns over the Strait of Hormuz.

Nifty opened at 24,538.90 against the previous close of 24,636 and was trading at around 24,596.05, down 39.95 points or 0.16 per cent at the time of reporting. Likewise, Sensex opened lower at 78,516.08 (down 438.68 points) against the previous close of 78,954.76 and was trading at around 78,709.63, down 245.13 points or 0.31 per cent at the same time.

Sectorally, most indices traded in the red; however, auto, FMCG, IT, realty, oil & gas traded in the green. Broad market indices remained largely mixed.

On BSE, T...