Asian stocks plunge after fall in oil prices

BEIJING (AP) — Asian stock markets plunged Monday after global oil prices nosedived on worries a global economy weakened by a virus outbreak might be awash in too much crude.

Tokyo's benchmark tumbled 4.7%, while Hong Kong, Sydney and Seoul also were down at least 3%. Shares also sank in Middle East trading on Sunday.

Markets already were troubled by the potential impact of the virus outbreak that began in China and has disrupted travel and trade.

Saudi Arabia, Russia and other oil producers are arguing over how much to cut output to prop up prices.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell to 19,773.26 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng sank 3.8% to 25,134.73. The Shanghai Composite Index was off 1.6% at 2,987.18.

The S&P-ASX 200 in Sydney fell 5.6% to 5,869.50. The Kospi in Seoul lost 3.1% to 1,977.58.