Japanese and South Korean stock markets opened lower across the board, with South Korea's KOSPI index falling 2.67%.

The Nikkei 225 index opened down 404.45 points, or 0.80%, at 50,432.10 on Monday, December 15. The South Korean KOSPI index opened down 111.31 points, or 2.67%, at 4,055.85 on Monday, December 15.