Stocks Opened Lower on Europe Concerns

U.S. stocks began lower on Monday, as European leaders differed on how to confront their regional debt crisis. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately fell 46.08 points to 13,533.39. The S&P 500 index declined 5.96 points to 1,454.19, with technology hardest hit of its 10 sectors. The Nasdaq Composite  lost 20.35 points to 3,159.61.

A representative from the Greek Ministry of Finance on Monday denied reports that the country must close a 20 billion euros ($26 billion) budget shortfall to meet requirements from international lenders, as reported in German magazine Der Spiegel over the weekend.

German business sentiment dropped for a fifth straight month in September to its lowest since early 2010. The Munich-based Ifo institute said its business climate index, based on a monthly survey of some 7,000 firms, fell to 101.4 in September from 102.3 in August, defying expectations for a slight rise.

Toyota Motor Corp has scrapped plans for widespread sales of a new all-electric minicar, saying it had misread the market and the ability of still- emerging battery technology to meet consumer demands.

The price of oil fell below $92 a barrel on Monday, dragged down by concerns about weakening global growth and demand for crude. By early afternoon in Europe, benchmark crude was down $1.28 at $91.61 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.