Europe close: Oil price slide dents stocks

European stocks finished the day on a mixed note as worries about Deutsche Bank and the broader banking sector as well as falling oil prices offset cheer about the outcome of the first US presidential debate, which saw Hillary Clinton come out on top versus rival Donald Trump.

By the closing bell, the benchmark Stoxx Europe 600 index had edged higher by 0.06%, Germany’s DAX was 0.31% lower and France’s CAC 40 was off 0.21%.

According to a CNN poll, 62% of the voters who watched the televised debate between the two US presidential rivals overnight said Clinton had won the debate, versus 27% who believed Trump had stolen the show.

Oil prices retreated after Iran played down expectations for a deal on oil production, calling the OPEC meeting on Wednesday “consultative” and dashing hopes that an agreement will be made. West Texas Intermediate was down 3.54% at $44.36 a barrel and Brent crude was off 3.48% at $45.76.

Shares Deutsche Bank managed to come off their intra-session lows to end a smidgen higher after it reassured investors it has enough cash to pay the $14bn fine from the US Department of Justice for mis-sold mortgage-backed securities. On Monday, the stock tanked as Chancellor Angela Merkel ruled out any state aid for the bank, which then responded by saying it would solve its problems on its own.

Deutsche weighed on the broader sector, the Stoxx 600 banks index closed down by 0.31%, well off its worst levels of the day too.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen shares fell sharply following a report that the US Justice Department is assessing how big a fine it can extract from the beleaguered German car maker without putting it out of business.

Stock in another German lender, Commerzbank, dropped after a report in Handelsblatt suggesting it was planning to cut around 9,000 jobs over the coming years as part of its restructuring plan.

Legal & General was weaker as it said that following a strong third quarter its retirement arm was on track to double new business sales in the full-year, with customer demand for bulk annuities and lifetime mortgages seemingly unaffected by the introduction of Solvency II regulation, Brexit uncertainty or lower interest rates.

Plumbers merchant Wolseley slumped after announcing job cuts and store closures despite a rise in full-year profits.

On the upside, United Utilities edged higher after saying it expects revenue for the first half of this year to be slightly lower than in the same period of last year, but underlying operating profit to be marginally higher.

Electrolux gained after an upgrade by Nordea Bank, while Orange was boosted by an upgrade from Credit Suisse.