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Europe's stock markets rebounded slightly on Thursday but gains were capped by a "cocktail" of negative factors, dealers said.
London rose 0.2% in late morning trade as investors tracked the latest Brexit developments, while Paris also won 0.2% and Frankfurt added 0.4% around midday.
The slender gains came after global markets were haunted on Wednesday by stubborn worries over global trade wars, high oil price levels, Brexit uncertainty and Italy's ongoing fiscal troubles.
Wall Street sank overnight as minutes from the Federal Reserve's meeting last month confirmed that most policymakers expected more gradual interest rate hikes.
"Despite sipping on a Brexit/trade war/Italian budget/US interest rates cocktail, the European markets managed a positive start to Thursday's trading," noted Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell.
On the downside, Asian markets resumed falls on Thursday as investors contemplated more interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve, while Washington added to China-US frictions.
"Despite a disappointing session in Asia, European markets have seen further buying pressure ... as the recovery from the lows continues," said IG analyst Chris Beauchamp.
"Dollar strength following on from last night's Fed minutes has risen as the bank looks to maintain, and even increase, the pace of tightening, if only to give itself the room for manoeuvre necessary if the economy turns southwards in the coming two years."
Meanwhile, UK Prime Minister Theresa May said Britain would consider extending the transition period after Brexit for a few months if needed to agree a new trade deal with the European Union.
EU negotiator Michel Barnier raised the idea as a way of breaking the deadlock on how to keep Britain's border with Ireland open after Brexit, the key issue holding up the divorce talks.
But May emphasised she did not expect the extension beyond the current date of December 2020 to be needed, amid anger among eurosceptics at home that Britain could be tied to the EU indefinitely.
"Markets appear to be viewing the Brexit negotiations with the same exhaustion as everyone else, as both sides play for time," noted Beauchamp.
"The risk of wandering into a 'no deal' scenario is still on the rise," he warned.
Back in Asia on Thursday, Shanghai dived almost three percent to a four-year low as already-strained relations between China and the US took another hit after the White House said it plans to withdraw from an international treaty on postal rates, in a decision aimed at pressuring Beijing.
The move was pushed by top advisor Peter Navarro, according to The New York Times. Navarro has encouraged Donald Trump to crack down on China on a variety of trade and political questions that he has argued disadvantage the US.
The "president has gone postal, escalating US-China tensions and a stronger dollar will pose considerable headwinds to local equity markets," warned Oanda analyst Stephen Innes.
Also Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin refused to call China a currency manipulator but raised concerns about the yuan's fall and Beijing's exchange practices.
