Oil prices surged in early trading on Monday, with major Asian stock markets mostly trading lower.
Japan's main index Nikkei 225 is down 1.0 percent while the broader Topix is down 0.5 percent at midday local time.
South Korea's Kospi and Hong Kong's Hang Seng are down 1.2 and 1.1 percent, respectively.
On the Chinese mainland, sentiment is slightly more positive: Shenzhen is up 0.2 percent while Shanghai is unchanged.
