March 12 (Reuters) - Indian shares opened lower on Thursday, extending the previous session's losses, as oil prices soared on escalating Middle East tensions and trade worries resurfaced after the U.S. opened fresh probes into 16 key partners, including India.
The Nifty 50 fell 1.13% to 23,596.2, while the BSE Sensex lost 1.23% to 75,921.04 as of 9:18 a.m. IST.
All 16 major sectors logged losses at the open. The broader small-caps and mid-caps are down 1.5% and 1.3%, respectively.
The decline came as oil surged past $100 a barrel after Iraqi security officials said Iranian explosive-laden boats had struck two fuel-oil tankers, amid wider supply disruptions from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, adding that oil ports "have completely stopped operations."
Higher oil prices hurt oil-importing countries such as India by adding inflationary pressures and widening the import bill.
Sentiment also weakened after the United States launched new unfair-trade investigations into 16 countries, including India, in a move aimed at reinstating U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff pressure.
(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru and Bharath Rajeswaran in Mumbai; Editing by Sumana Nandy)
