Asian shares fell sharply on Monday amid fears of a severe economic fallout from the global coronavirus pandemic, dpa reported. India's domestic stock markets plunged by over 11 per cent after the country entered a lockdown. Trading was halted for 45 minutes after benchmark 30-share Sensex plunged 10 per cent in the first few minutes of trade to trigger the lower circuit. It extended its losses after trading resumed and was down 3,494.25 points, or 11.68 per cent, around 11:30 am (0600 GMT). The broader 50-share S&P CNX Nifty of the National Stock Exchange also tanked over 1,000 points, down 11.54 per cent. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX200 index closed down 5.62 per cent while the broader All Ordinaries index also dived 5.98 per cent. South Korea's Kospi plunged 5.34 per cent on the day and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index dropped 4.86 per cent while the Shanghai Composite index declined 3.11 per cent. Meanwhile, Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average closed up 2.02 per cent as investors bought back shares that were seen as oversold.