LONDON (Reuters) - European shares steadied on Monday just off recent highs, following weaker Asian trading as and some earnings disappointments which took the shine off early trading.
The pan-European STOXX 600 (STOXX) traded flat by 0825 GMT, but trading was rocked by sharp falls from Dutch firms SBM Offshore and Vopak .
Offshore energy company SBM Offshore (AS:SBMO) sank 12 percent after taking a $238 million provision to settle a U.S. probe over a Latin American bribery case.
The company said a preliminary settlement reached with Brazilian authorities had fallen through, and as a result it would no longer be able to participate in tenders for Petrobras (SA:PETR4), one of its largest customers.
Chemical and oil storage firm Vopak (AS:VOPA) suffered a 7 percent drop after profits missed expectations. It lowered its earnings guidance for the full-year 2017, citing weaker occupancy rates and higher costs.
Shares in French hotel group Accor (PA:ACCP) fell 1.7 percent at the open, the biggest of the CAC 40 fallers, after its third biggest shareholder Prince Alwaleed bin Talal was arrested in Saudi Arabia amid a purge by the future king.
The news is stirring concerns about the possibility of Saudi money pulling out of world markets.
Bank stocks were weaker across the region, with Societe Generale (PA:SOGN) and BNP Paribas (PA:BNPP) among the worst performers and euro zone banks (SX7E) down 0.9 percent as investors exercised greater caution.
Among stock gainers, Tullow Oil (L:TLW) rose 3.3 percent, leading oil stocks higher after crude prices soared to the highest since July 2015 amid the Saudi purge.
Spain's IBEX index (IBEX) slipped 0.3 percent, underperforming European peers, after sacked Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont turned himself in to Belgian authorities while weekend polls showed parties favouring Catalan independence would likely win December's regional election.
With 60 percent of third-quarter results through for MSCI Europe, 67 percent of companies have beaten or met expectations.
Financials and technology stocks have been the clear leaders while energy and utilities stocks have underperformed, Thomson Reuters data showed.
