Asian Stocks Plunge as Oil Prices Soar Amid Saudi Arabia Disruptions

Asian share markets declined on Monday as rising oil prices and concerns about supply disruptions sparked by attacks in Saudi Arabia weighed heavily on investor sentiment.

The Brent crude price rose by 3% to US$107.84 a barrel, while the US dollar-denominated benchmark for US crude increased by 2.8% to US$102.85 a barrel.

Analysts warn that shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb could lead to prolonged elevated oil prices, stoking inflation globally.

Markets are pricing in an 86% chance of a 25-basis-point Fed rate hike on Wednesday, following an uncomfortably hot US consumer price report on Friday.