Manufacturing contracts in Europe and possibly the US

Reports on Monday showed that manufacturing continued to contract in Europe in November but at a slower pace.

In the euro area, Markit's manufacturing PMI rose to 46.2 in November from 45.4 in October.

In the UK, the Markit/CIPS manufacturing PMI jumped to 49.1 in November from 47.3 in October.

Reports on US manufacturing on Monday, however, were contradictory.

Markit's US manufacturing PMI rose to 52.8 in November from 51.0 in October.

However, the Institute for Supply Management's manufacturing PMI fell to 49.5 in November from 51.7 in October. The November reading is the lowest since July 2009 and suggests contraction in US manufacturing activity.

Another report in the US on Monday showed that construction spending rose 1.4 percent in October, the most in five months, to an annual rate of $872.1 billion, the highest level in over three years.