India, Sept. 2 -- Indian stock market indices Sensex and Nifty dropped sharply on opening on Wednesday, reacting to the international developments - the major escalation in the Iran-US conflict.

In pre-opening trade, Sensex was at over 540 points down - at 76,397.24, while Nifty was down over 203 points - at 23,852.05.

Oil prices have also surged to a near-six-week high after the US and Iran exchanged strikes overnight, intensifying the Middle East conflict and renewing concerns over inflation.

GIFT Nifty futures were at 24,033.5 points as of 7:38 am, signalling a negative start for the Nifty 50 index, which closed at 24,055.8 on Tuesday, according to data cited in a Reuters report.

Brent crude went up two per cent to $96.6 a barrel, ...