U.S. Stocks Tumble on U.S., Europe Worries

U.S. stocks opened sharply lower Monday amid worries about the Greek sovereign debt crisis and the political battle over U.S. deficit reduction.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 171.73 points (1.49 percent) to 11,337.36 in the first five minutes of trade.

The broader S&P 500 dropped 20.38 points (1.68 percent) to 1,195.63, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell 41.12 points (1.57 percent) to 2,581.19.

Stocks fell after Eurozone finance ministers over the weekend failed to find a convincing way to tackle Greece's sovereign debt crisis.

Sentiment also was under pressure ahead of U.S. President Barack Obama's release of a deficit-reduction plan. According to officials, the proposal will include tax hikes expected to be opposed by Republicans.