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Just after 08:00 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index was down slightly by 0.3 per cent, reports Reuters.
This year, the index is down by more than ten per cent on 2008, but up over 15 per cent from earlier this month.
Stock strategist Bernard McAlinden said better-than-expected earnings data from the US had given the European exchanges a boost yesterday.
"There is nothing great to drive Europe today. There is no great data in Europe ... though the US Michigan sentiment survey might be of interest later to see if it has improved or has appeared to have reached a low," he commented.
Earlier this week, prime minister Gordon Brown told the European Parliament that Europe is "uniquely placed" to lead the world out of the economic downturn.
