PARIS: European stock markets opened in lacklustre fashion on Monday following the Christmas break, with the Paris and Frankfurt exchanges opening slightly down.
The CAC 40 shed 0.45 percent from its last trading day Thursday, at 4,642.23 points, while Frankfurt's DAX was off just 0.01 percent to 10,726.13 in early trading.
London markets were closed for a bank holiday.
US and European markets had refrained from major swings in their final sessions Thursday before the festive break, avoiding fireworks after heavy volatility in the preceding days.
"The between-the-holidays period has never been much of one for big movements in the financial markets," said Barclays Bourse analyst Philippe Cohen.
In Asia, markets broadly fell as a decline in profits at China's industrial firms reignited worries about the world's number two economy, but bargain-buying helped Tokyo snap a five-day losing streak.
Industrial profits slid 1.4 percent to 672.1 billion yuan ($104 billion) in November, according to data released on Sunday by China's National Bureau of Statistics.
"We see weakness across industries, with few signs of improvement," Steve Wang, chief China economist at Reorient Financial Markets in Hong Kong, told Bloomberg News.
The fresh figures weighed on mainland markets with Shanghai down 2.59 percent and Shenzhen off 2.18 percent by the close.
Shares in China Telecom dropped as much as three percent after news its head was under investigation for "severe disciplinary violations", the latest high-profile target in a corruption crackdown.
On currency markets the dollar rose to 120.53 yen from 120.19 on Friday in Tokyo, as investors bought back the US currency after it hit a two-month low against the Japanese unit last week.
A weak yen is a plus for Japanese exporters, as it boosts their repatriated profits and competitiveness overseas.
Dealers largely ignored a 1.0 percent decline in Japan's factory output in November -- after two months of gains -- announced by the government shortly before Tokyo opened Monday morning.
The disappointing data comes after separate figures last week showed still-weak inflation and household spending, as the world's number three economy struggles to stage a recovery.
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