Wall Street stock indexes opened weakly on Monday ahead of a European Union summit as Greece and Germany sparred over budget measures for Athens. European leaders were expected to sign off on a permanent rescue fund for the euro zone and to agree on a balanced budget rule in national legislation. But traders sensed some hesitation. "Resolution for Greece is now up in the air, and that's causing some concern," said Alan Lancz, president of investment advisory firm Alan B. Lancz & Associates in Toledo, Ohio. We could give up the gains we've seen so far this month if there ends up being no progress. In early trading the Dow Jones industrial average was down 1 percent, and the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index fell 1.2 percent. The Nasdaq composite index also declined 1.2 percent. While sentiment had improved over the euro zone this year, with the S.&P. 500 up 4.7 percent this month, many investors still view the region with caution as setbacks in solving its sovereign debt problems could hamper international economic growth and erode domestic bank profits. In afternoon trading, the Euro Stoxx 50 of euro zone blue chips was off 1.2 percent. The DAX lost 1.1 percent and the CAC 40 was behind 1.3 percent. Barclays fell 4.6 percent and Deutsche Bank sank 5.6 percent. An index of European banks lost 3.3 percent. Standard & Poor's late Friday issued negative ratings on three brokerage firms, including Jefferies Group, citing the impact of a prolonged crisis in Europe. Issues in Europe had taken a back seat to the focus on corporate earnings in recent weeks. By the end of last week, a majority of companies had topped analyst consensus expectations, though by a lower rate than in previous quarters. On Monday, Gannett reported adjusted fourth-quarter earnings that beat expectations. McKesson is scheduled to report later Monday, with Amazon.com, Exxon Mobil and Pfizer on tap for later this week. Shares of The Pep Boys -- Manny, Moe & Jack soared 25 percent after the company agreed to be bought by Gores Group for $791 million. The Swiss engineering group ABB agreed to buy Thomas & Betts, an American electrical components maker, for $3.9 billion in cash, sending shares of the company up 22 percent. Consumer spending in the United States was flat in December as households took advantage of the largest rise in income in nine months to boost their savings, setting the tone for a slowdown in demand early in 2012. Wall Street ended little changed on Friday as investors saw dips in the market as an opportunity to buy into what has been a strong first month of 2012.