European Stocks Drop on Merkel’s Election Defeat; Clariant Sinks

European stocks tumbled, with the Stoxx Europe 600 Index posting its biggest two-day drop since March 2009, as investors speculated that support for bailing out Europe’s indebted nations may fade.

Deutsche Bank AG and Credit Suisse Group AG both tumbled more than 8 percent after the U.S. sued 17 lenders to recoup $196 billion and the cost of insuring against default in Europe surge to a record. Clariant AG led chemical makers lower, tumbling 16 percent after the company cut this year’s earnings forecasts.