European stocks close:

European stocks closed little changed, after swinging between gains and losses, as investors await tomorrow’s European Central Bank meeting.

Under Draghi’s proposed blueprint, which may be called “Monetary Outright Transactions,” the ECB would refrain from setting a public cap on yields, according to two central bank officials, and a third official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. The plan will only focus on government bonds rather than a broader range of assets and will target short-dated maturities of up to about three years, two of the people said.

National benchmark indexes advanced in 12 of the 18 western-European markets. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index fell 0.3 percent. France’s CAC 40 gained 0.2 percent and Germany’s DAX rose 0.5 percent.

Richemont added 1.5 percent to 60.05 Swiss francs after the world’s largest jewelry maker reported revenue that climbed 23 percent in the five months through August as the dollar’s strength boosted the value of sales in that currency.

BP, the owner of the Macondo well that caused the worst U.S. oil spill two years ago, slid 2.9 percent to 423.85 pence after the U.S. Justice Department reiterated it will pursue charges of gross negligence in the case. The company faces a trial with the DOJ after reaching a $7.8 billion settlement in March with victims of the spill.

STMicroelectronics NV declined 4.9 percent to 4.40 euros after UBS AG lowered its recommendation for the biggest European chipmaker to sell from neutral, saying its share price doesn’t take account of continuing challenges to the business. Exane BNP Paribas also downgraded the shares to underperform, the equivalent of a sell rating, from neutral.