Paris - French shares were mixed in early Thursday trading in the wake of overnight losses on Wall Street and Asian markets.

In mid-morning trading on the Paris Bourse, the benchmark CAC 40 index was up 0.29 per cent, at 3,307.77, with losers and gainers running about even, as investors were apparently still digesting two contradictory reports about the state of the French economy.

The government's statistical office Insee announced Thursday that French household spending on manufactured products had risen by a healthy 0.6 per cent in September.

However, Insee also said that French manufacturers' confidence - generally an accurate forecast of coming economic developments - had fallen to its lowest point since December 1993. (dpa)