European shares off to sluggish start to week, banks weak

Euro zone shares fell slightly on Monday, pulling back further from their highest point in almost two years, dragged lower by financials and as holidays in major markets such as the UK and the United States kept investors away.

European blue chips eased 0.1 percent. Spain's IBEX fell 0.4 percent with shares of travel booking software firm Amadeus down another 2 percent and extending Friday's losses. Germany's DAX was little changed.

UK markets were shut for a public holiday.

All main sectors on the European benchmarks were trading in the red. Regional banks were among the biggest drags, however, as investors continued to lock in some gains following the sector's stellar run from last summer's lows.

Spanish-listed shares of International Airlines Group , the parent company of British Airways, fell 2.5 percent. BA flights have suffered massive disruptions over the weekend with over 1,000 flights cancelled after a computer system failure.

Italy's Banco BPM and Unicredit were both down nearly 2 percent.

The dip in oil prices, exacerbated by a relentless rise in U.S. drilling that has undermined an OPEC-led push to tighten supply spurred investors, has dented appetite for risky assets among some investors over the past week.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)