2017.05.2406:21:00UTC+00European Stocks Steady as Miners Weigh on Index

European stocks inched up as investors assessed the downgrade on China's debt and growing optimism for more oil-production trims ahead of the OPEC meeting on Thursday.

The pan-European Stoxx 600 Index was 0.1 percent higher. Shares were below 21-month peaks for more than a week, as gains in oil producers were counterbalanced by weakness in mining and autos stocks.

The Stoxx 600 rose 0.2 percent the previous day as upbeat economic data from Germany and France helped raise the shares of cyclical firms.

Among national markets, Britain's FTSE 100 advanced 0.2 percent and Germany's DAX dropped 0.2 percent, pulled down by stocks like Hugo Boss and Evonik turning ex-dividend.

Real estate shares were among the best-performing sectors. Oil & gas stocks were supported by BP and Royal Dutch Shell while banking shares were also stronger.

The largest sectoral decliners were European auto stocks, slipping over one percent. They were driven lower by the 2.5 percent drop in Daimler, which extended declines after its sites were searched by German prosecutors in an emissions investigation.

Fiat Chrysler slipped one percent. Shares in the Italian automaker recovered some of their earlier declines after the U.S. government sued the company over emissions.