Tokyo's benchmark index fell by an unusually wide daily margin of 2.1%. Shanghai, Hong Kong and Seoul also retreated. Global crude prices added more than US$1 per barrel in a sign of concern about possible supply disruptions.
"Markets are belatedly waking up to the geopolitical risks posed by Russian military action against Ukraine," Rabobank said in a report.The Bank of Japan made an offer for unlimited government bond purchases on Monday, moving to curb a surge in long-term interest rates. Japan's central bank set the interest rate for purchasing 10-year government bonds at 0.25%.
Investors already were on edge about Federal Reserve plans to wind down economic stimulus to cool inflation that is at a four-decade high and about how quickly Europe and other central banks would follow.