Wall Street drops as euro zone concern weighs

US stocks closed at their lowest levels in a month in a sign of increasing doubt that equity markets can weather recent weakness in global manufacturing and demand.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 130.78 points, or 1.05 percent, to 12,381.26. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 15.90 points, or 1.19 percent, to 1,317.37. The Nasdaq Composite fell 44.42 points, or 1.58 percent, to 2,758.90..

European shares hit a five-week closing low as a cut in credit ratings for Greece and a "negative" outlook for Italy raised concerns about the euro zone's continuing debt crisis

The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares finished 1.7 percent weaker at 1,116.52 points, the lowest close since mid-April. It turned negative for 2011 and was down 0.5 percent. Autos, banks and commodities were among the top losers.

In Asia, the Nikkei average fell to a five-week low after hedge funds unwound positions in construction machinery makers, spurred by Nomura Securities' downgrades on sagging China demand, with investors eyeing more losses for the benchmark after it breached a key support level.

The benchmark Nikkei closed down 1.5 percent at 9,460.63, hitting its lowest level in five weeks, while the broader Topix shed 1.2 percent to 817.68.