U.S. stock market indexes fell sharply in Monday's early trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average retreated eight-tenths of a percent, the S&P 500 fell one percent and the NASDAQ lost seven-tenths of a percent.

European stock markets were lower in afternoon trading. London's Financial Times 100 index nine-tenths of a percent, the CAC-40 in Paris moved down 2.1 percent, and the DAX in Frankfurt slid 1.9 percent.

Earlier in Asia, Tokyo's Nikkei index dropped seven-tenths of a percent to close at 10,070. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 1.7 percent to finish at 22,347.

The price of gold rose nearly $12 to trade at $1,556.06 an ounce.

The dollar was lower against the yen but rose compared to the euro.