Asian shares plunged Thursday, AP reported. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 dived 4.9% to 18,468.99. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 dropped 6.6% to 5,348.60. South Korea's Kospi dipped 4.7% to 1,815.98. Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 3.8% to 24,269.06, while the Shanghai Composite index shed 1.3% to 2,928.80. Thailand's benchmark plunged 8%. In other trading, benchmark U.S. crude lost $1.29 to $31.69 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It lost $1.38 to $32.98 per barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude, the standard for international pricing, gave up $1.50 to $34.29 per barrel. The dollar weakened to 103.98 Japanese yen from 104.53 yen on Wednesday. The euro rose to $1.1291 from $1.1271.