European officials ended a weekend meeting without agreeing on new ways to tackle the debt crisis, and a call by US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner at the meeting for more fiscal stimulus was rejected.

Investors feared the crisis was worsening after Greece’s prime minister canceled a US trip to chair an emergency

cabinet meeting at home and international lenders urged Athens to shrink its public sector and improve tax collection to secure a vital eight-billion-euro rescue payment next month.

That prompted investors to seek refuge in the US dollar and Treasuries.

But gold, which often benefits from safe-haven flows, retreated more than $30 an ounce on the stronger dollar.

World stocks as measured by the MSCI world equity index fell 1.9 percent on the day after posting the biggest weekly gain since early July last week.

“People went into the weekend in hopes that Geithner’s visit to Europe would bring more clarity but no positive move came out and we are back with dealing with European problems,” said Karl Mills, president of Jurika, Mills & Keifer Investment Partners, in Oakland, California.

Investors, he said, were “not only over-bought but we were over-hoped.”

On Wall Street, US stocks fell for the first time in six sessions.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 208.47 points, or 1.81 percent, at 11,300.62.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was down 20.91 points, or 1.72 percent, at 1,195.10.

The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 27.05 points, or 1.03 percent, at 2,595.26.

European stocks ended 2.3 percent lower at 916.07.

The STOXX Europe 600 Banks index fell 3.4 percent to feature amongst the worst performers. Emerging stocks dropped 3 percent.

“There will be additional volatility in the global financial markets heading into the end of the month as the

pressure to get Greece and others to enact their reforms will be white-hot intense,” said Andrew Busch, global currency strategist at BMO Capital Markets in Chicago.

The International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank and European Union, known as the Troika, “will threaten to use the nuclear option of not providing the payment that allows Greece to avoid default,” Busch added.

Finance ministers of the BRIC emerging economies — Brazil, Russia, India and China — will meet this week to discuss support for the euro zone.

A Brazilian newspaper said on Monday the five BRICS nations, which also includes South Africa, have already bought debt through the European Financial Stability Facility and could buy more.

Focus is now shifting to a conference call under way between Greece and its international lenders to see how Greece plans to make up its budget shortfall and avoid a disorderly default. The call may last until Tuesday.

With gloom widespread, investors took little comfort from expectations that the Federal Reserve would introduce new measures to stimulate the US economy when it meets on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The euro shed 1.1 percent to $1.3648, and traders braced for a move to last week’s seven-month low of $1.3495. Losses in the euro helped push the dollar 0.7 percent higher against a basket of currencies. The yen also benefited from a safety bid, with the euro down 1.5 percent.

The dollar slipped 0.4 percent to 76.47 yen.

While the Swiss franc is typically the beneficiary of safe-haven flows, recent actions by the Swiss National Bank to

weaken it have pushed more of those flows to the dollar and yen.

US government bond prices soared.

The benchmark 10-year US Treasury note was up 1-4/32, with the yield at 1.93 percent.

“People are buying the dollar, turning around and buying US Treasuries immediately,” said Greg Salvaggio, vice

president of trading at Tempus Consulting in Washington.

Long-dated Treasuries outperformed on expectations the Fed will try to push already low long-term interest rates even lower by tilting toward longer-duration bonds in its portfolio.

Prices of 30-year bonds were up 2-18/32, their yields falling to 3.18 percent, the lowest since January 2009.

Gold last traded around $1,772.39 an ounce, retreating from the day’s high of $1,827.36. A stronger US currency makes dollar-denominated metals more expensive for holders of other currencies. The precious metal hit a record high of $1,920.30 on Sept. 6.

In other commodities, oil fell on concerns Europe’s debt crisis would hit demand. Brent crude fell $3.39 to $108.83 a barrel. US crude slipped $2.75 to $85.21.

Investors were also wary of taking on risk for fear Republicans will not agree to finance part of President Barack

Obama’s $447 billion job creation plan with tax hikes on the rich.