In Europe on Tuesday, the FTSE Eurofirst 300 dropped 0.6 percent to 1,444.16 as banks saw losses.
UBS dropped 5.1 percent to SFr74.30 after it said it saw net profits drop by 21 percent in the third quarter. It still insisted, however, that sentiment has improved and it will fulfill expectations for full-year profits. Credit Suisse was also lower, falling 1.3 percent to SFr75.
Also down on its quarterly report was Sanofi-Aventis. The pharmaceuticals company dropped 2.8 percent to €66.60 on the news that profits fell 11.6 in the third quarter, about as much as had been expected.
Things were better in the automobile manufacturing sector. DaimlerChrysler added 3.1 percent to €44.70 after a German publication reported that a spin-off of the Chrysler unit was not being ruled out by the carmaker, a rumor that not all analysts were buying. Elsewhere in the sector, Fiat was 1.1 percent higher to €13.84 and Renault gained 1.2 percent to €91.65.
European insurers were also higher after a positive third-quarter report sent Friends Provident up 6.7 percent in the UK. Generali added 1.4 percent to €31.09, while CNP Assurances was up 1.7 percent to €82.45.
In the construction sector, Spanish builder Ferrovial was 5.1 percent higher to €72.40 on the announcement that its toll roads unit had acquired a road in Chile.