The American stock markets suffered their sharpest drop inweeks as concerns about the economic impact of surging coronavirus cases sentshares tumbling.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 2.3 per cent,after dropping more than 3 per cent earlier in the day. The S&P 500 fell1.8 per cent and the Nasdaq 1.6 per cent, the BBC reported on Monday.
Stocks in Europe, where a rise in virus cases has promptednew restrictions, also declined.
Shares in travel and energy firms took some of the heaviestlosses.
In the United States, cruise lines Royal CaribbeanGroup,Carnival and Norwegian all dropped more than 8 per cent, while in the UK,British Airways owner IAG closed 7.6 per cent lower.
Travel firms have been some of the most sensitive towarnings about the virus, which experts worry will intensify as winterapproaches.
On Monday, Michael Ryan, an emergencies expert for the WorldHealth Organization, said that Europe would need "much morecomprehensive" measures to get the virus under control.
"Right now we're well behind this virus in Europe, sogetting ahead of it is going to take some serious acceleration in what wedo," he said.
On Monday, France's CAC 40 ended 1.9 per cent lower, whileGermany's Dax index dropped 3.7 per cent. In the UK, the FTSE 100 fell nearly1.2 per cent.
US President Donald Trumphas vowed to avoid widespreadrestrictions on activity, similar to the lockdown restrictions seen thisspring, saying such limits are not worth the economic cost.
But such decisions are typically handled by local leaders inAmerica, some of whom, such as the mayors of El Paso, Texas and Newark, NewJersey, tightened rules on Monday.
Over the last week, the number of new virus cases reporteddaily in the US has repeatedly passed 80,000, sending the seven day average toa new high of nearly 69,000 - roughly double what it was in September.
The number of hospitalisations has jumped 40 per cent in thepast month and death rates are also rising, though more slowly.
On a per capita basis, the number of new cases in the USover the past seven days remains lower than some other countries, including theUK, Spain and France, which have announced new restrictions recently.
But analysts say the economy is unlikely to mend untilconcerns about Covid-19 are resolved.
Amid those strains, investors are also worried about theimpasse in Washington over the need to fund additional coronavirus economicrelief.
On Monday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who has beentrying to broker a deal for the White House, said the two sides remained farapart. Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi, who leads Democrats in the House ofRepresentatives made similar comments.