By Anora Mahmudova and Sara Sjolin, MarketWatch

Mexican peso rallies after Clinton and Trump face off

U.S. stocks traded modestly higher Tuesday, partially boosted by the outcome of the presidential debate between Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and Republican contender Donald Trump and a number of better-than-expected economic reports.

However, a slide crude-oil prices put a cap on the gains, as energy shares sank.

Crude-oil prices dropped more than 2.6% after both Iran and Saudi Arabia played down expectations for a deal to freeze or cut oil production at the closely watched informal OPEC meeting on Wednesday.

The boost in stocks and futures overnight may be interpreted as supportive for U.S. equity markets because Trump is perceived by some as being more unpredictable.

The S&P 500 index was up 6 points, or 0.3%, to 2,152. Consumer-discretionary and technology shares led the gainers, while the energy was down 0.8% thanks to a slide in oil.

"It's clear that U.S. stock futures got a boost after Clinton's superior performance at the debate," said Mark Kepner, managing director of sales and trading at Themis Trading.

Kepner noted that worried over troubled Deutsche Bank and a drop in oil kept investors cautious.

"Some investors are wondering if Deutsche Bank troubles may turn into a Lehman scenario and that's putting pressure on European equities," Kepner said.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 85 points, or 0.5%, to 18,180, with most of the blue-chip companies trading higher.

The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 33 points, or 0.6%, to 5,290.

Read:At debate, Trump and Clinton clash on how to remake the economy (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-trump-and-clinton-want-to-remake-the-economy-2016-09-26)

However, the main focus early for investors was Monday night's presidential debate and how it could influence the direction of the economy and the global market.

"The perception on Wall Street is that [Clinton] would be the safer pair of hands, but with two further debates and six more weeks of campaigning to go, this race seems set to be a bountiful source of market volatility in the near term," Paul Webb, deputy CEO at ADS Securities London, in a note.

Oil prices on Tuesday dropped sharply after Iran and Saudi Arabia poured cold water on hopes (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/oil-prices-lower-after-iran-douses-hopes-for-production-deal-2016-09-27) for a production-cap deal at the oil producers' meeting this week. The Wednesday meeting, on the sidelines of an energy conference in Algeria, will be "consultative," both nations said.

Also weighing on oil prices, Goldman Sachs cut its fourth quarter forecast for crude oil to $43 a barrel from $50 expected previously (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/goldman-cuts-q4-wti-oil-forecast-to-43-a-barrel-from-50-2016-09-27).

On Monday, U.S. stocks ended lower (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-brace-for-sharp-losses-in-nervous-wait-for-presidential-debate-2016-09-26), as concerns about the outcome of the debate weighed on sentiment. After the debate, Accendo Markets noted that it is "still early days" to dismiss Trump's chances.

"Trump could be setting the bar low for the remaining face-offs. And he does have a 'bouncebackability' that has already helped his campaign get within touching distance of the Oval Office," Accendo said in a note.

Mexico wave: In another sign suggesting financial markets (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/financial-markets-say-clinton-beat-trump-in-the-debate-2016-09-26) were betting that Clinton would benefit from the debate the Mexican peso surged against the dollar on Tuesday. The greenback fell to 19.535 pesos, down from 19.879 pesos late Monday in New York.

The peso has been acting as a gauge of the presidential election sentiment on the theory that a victory for Trump will at the very least result in less trade between the two countries, if not the building of a barrier on the U.S. southern border.

The U.S. Dollar Index , a measure of the buck's strength against a basket of six key rivals, was up 0.1% at 95.419.

Economic docket: The Case-Shiller home price index rose 5.0% for the year in July, while house prices rose 0.6%.

The Markit flash services purchasing managers index for September rose to 51.9 in September from 51 in August.

U.S. consumer confidence rose to 104.1 in September, the highest level since August 2007.

Stocks to watch: U.S.-listed shares of Deutsche Bank AG(DBK.XE) rebounded to trade higher.

Read:How Deutsche Bank woes are stressing out the U.S. stock market (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-deutsche-bank-woes-are-stressing-out-the-us-stock-market-2016-09-26)

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-deutsche-bank-woes-are-stressing-out-the-us-stock-market-2016-09-26)Shares of EndoChoice Holdings Inc.(GI) soared 87% after Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) said it would buy the medical technology company for roughly $210 million (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/boston-sci-to-buy-endochoice-for-210-million-2016-09-27).

(http://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-deutsche-bank-woes-are-stressing-out-the-us-stock-market-2016-09-26)FactSet Inc.(FDS) slipped 0.7%, even after posting a rise in earnings and revenue (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/factset-profit-and-revenue-rise-2016-09-27) in its fiscal fourth quarter.

Kite Pharma Inc.(KITE) surged 12% after the drugmaker late Monday released encouraging test results for its for its non-Hodgkin lymphoma drug.

Nike Inc.(NKE) will report earnings after the market's close (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/what-to-watch-for-in-nike-earnings-2016-09-23).

Other markets: Stocks in Europe were falling (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/european-stocks-slide-as-us-debate-cheer-fades-2016-09-27) after rising at the open as oil's slide dragged on the energy sector. In Asia, shares reversed earlier declines as investors reacted to the U.S. presidential debate (http://www.marketwatch.com/story/asian-shares-turn-mostly-higher-in-wake-of-us-presidential-debate-2016-09-27), with the Nikkei Stock Average closing up 0.8%.

Gold futures fell 0.3% to $1,336.10 an ounce.

--Carla Mozee contributed to this article.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 27, 2016 10:28 ET (14:28 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.