While you were sleeping: UPDATED US stocks, oil slide further

Wall Street slid anew with the price of oil. European banks also fell again.

The Dow Jones Industrials Average slipped 12.67 points, or less than 0.1%, to 16,014.38, after falling close to 146 points earlier in the day. The S&P 500 eased less than 0.1% to 1852.21 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.35% to 4268.76.

Oil moved lower, with West Texas Intermediate for March delivery dropping 5.9%  to $US27.94 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

"We're starting to feel some of the knock-on effects from energy and distress in those markets," Steven Baffico, chief executive officer at Four Wood Capital Partners in New York, told Reuters.

"Over the past couple of days, that's spread into the financial system," Mr Baffico noted. "It's difficult to find a lot of momentum to the upside for any sustained period of time."

Declines in shares of Chevron and those of Exxon Mobil, last down 3.5% and 2.6% respectively, led the slide in the Dow. Shares of Wal-Mart Stores were 2.6% weaker.

Viacom shares dropped 21% to $32.86 – making it the biggest laggard of the S&P 500 – after the company reported lower profits and revenue. Twenty-First Century Fox also fell after it reported earnings that fell short of the mark.

Wendy’s shares fell 4.3% even after the fast-food company’s profit rose more than expected while Coca-Cola shares rose 1.5% late in the session, after it reported stronger-than-expected quarterly profits. 

"Some people think this is a temporary setback and that the market maybe got a little ahead of itself-that nothing is really wrong with the economy and this is a good buying opportunity. Others think the market is indicating a slowdown in months ahead."

Bank shares have also been caught in the fray.

In an attempt to ease investors' concerns about its balance sheet, Deutsche Bank chief executive John Cryan said Germany's largest lender remained "absolutely rock-solid."

Separately, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein said the US bank might further cut costs.

"We can absolutely do a lot more on the cost side if we have to, especially now, when you have to deliver a return," Mr Blankfein said at the Credit Suisse financial services forum in Miami, according to Reuters.

"We take a particular and energetic look at continued cost cuts when revenues are stalled," he said. "Necessity is the mother of invention."

And shares of Credit Suisse Group sank more than 8% after the Swiss National Bank said it could cut its negative deposit rate further.

Europe's Stoxx 600 Index ended the day with a 1.6% decline from the previous close. That was its lowest since October 2013, according to Bloomberg.

The UK's FTSE 100 Index slid 1%, while Germany's DAX Index fell 1.1% and France's CAC 40 Index dropped 1.7%.

Greece's ASE Index dropped to its lowest since at least 1989, Bloomberg noted.

UPDATED for Wall Street close (10am NZ time) 

(BusinessDesk)