By Shashwat Chauhan
(Reuters) -European shares dipped on Monday as losses in technology stocks offset gains in banks and oil shares, and the focus was on the U.S. presidential election.
The pan-European STOXX 600 closed down 0.3%, with tech shares dropping 1.1% to lead sectoral declines.
Banks rose 0.7%, while energy stocks gained 0.4% as a decision by OPEC+ to delay plans to increase output pushed oil prices up by over 2%. [O/R]
All eyes are turned towards Tuesday's U.S. election, with opinion polls too close to call a clear winner between Republican candidate Donald Trump and Democrat Kamala Harris.
"A Trump win will probably bode for further relative underperformance of the European market versus the U.S. market," said Sebastiano Chiodino, head of liability driven investments at Generali (BIT:GASI) Asset Management.
Trump's policies on immigration, tax and tariffs are generally viewed as inflationary, which could prompt higher U.S. interest rates.
"On the opposite end, a Harris win will go more in continuity and inevitably some unwinding of the Trump trade which can trigger some catch up of European equity vs the U.S."
The pan-European benchmark is up by nearly 7% this year compared to a near 20% gain for the S&P 500.
Another keenly awaited event this week is the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision on Thursday, with markets all but convinced it will opt for a 25 basis points cut.
The Bank of England is also expected to ease its policy by 25 bps this week, while rate decisions will also be announced by Norway and Sweden.
Data indicated that euro zone manufacturing showed some signs of stabilisation in October. Activity contracted for a 28th month, but at a reduced pace.
STMicroelectronics, Europe's largest chipmaker by revenue, shed about 3% after Morgan Stanley downgraded the stock to "underweight" from "equal weight".
Schneider Electric (EPA:SCHN) fell 2.3% after the French industrials giant said it has ousted CEO Peter Herweck with immediate effect.
Volvo (OTC:VLVLY) Cars gained 5% after the Swedish automaker's sales rose 3% year-on-year in October.
UK's Burberry jumped 4.8% after a report over the weekend said that Italy's Moncler could be considering a bid for the luxury firm. Moncler edged 2% lower.
Swedish property group SBB dropped about 23% with analysts pointing to a report in a Swedish business daily that encouraged investors to sell stakes in the company.