Benchmark Brent oil prices tanked on Monday by more than nine percent to strike a four-year low, rocked by fears over virus-hit demand.

Gas prices are displayed at a Mobil gas station on March 10, 2020 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo: VCG)

In late morning deals, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in May sank to $30.56 per barrel, which was the lowest level since February 2016, with the market pressured also by a price war between major producers Saudi Arabia and Russia.

New York's WTI oil contract was meanwhile down 5.64 percent at $29.59 a barrel.