European markets end the year with a decline in their final trading session of 2024.

On Monday, European markets ended the year with a decline, marking the final full trading session in the region.

The pan-European index finished the session with a 0.48% decline, and most sectors were in the red.

Oil and gas stocks experienced growth, while technology, industrials, and media stocks suffered losses.

Exchanges in the region will either close early or shut entirely on Tuesday, marking the end of the New Year holiday as markets wind down.

The Stoxx 600 has gained around 5.5% this year, but it lags behind the U.S. index, which has experienced a 25% increase in 2024.

U.S. markets retreated on Monday, with light trade expected.

In Asia, stocks were mixed as investors monitored political turmoil in South Korea and industrial data from the country. Additionally, Japan published economic data at the start of the week showing that the contraction in its factory activity slowed down this month.

On Monday, the stock prices of Korean airlines decreased due to the Jeju Air plane crash that resulted in the deaths of 179 people the previous day, causing Jeju Air's share price to reach a new low.

On Monday, New York-listed shares of Boeing, whose 737-800 series aircraft was involved in the accident, fell around 2.2%. South Korean authorities plan to investigate the crash and examine all Boeing 737-800 planes in operation by domestic carriers as part of their investigation.

While shares of a French competitor were 0.6% lower, Dassault Aviation, a French manufacturer of military and business jets, ticked 1.6% higher.

On Monday morning, British online grocery retailer was at the bottom of the Stoxx 600. Its London-listed shares dropped 3.1% after reports emerged last week that many of its Christmas deliveries were missing essential items.

Ocado admitted that a small number of seasonal orders were not delivered as expected, and they apologized to those affected.

In December, Spain's annual EU-harmonized inflation rate increased to 2.8% from 2.4% in November, according to a flash estimate published Monday by the National Statistics Institute (INE).

Analysts in a Reuters poll forecasted a figure that was lower than the actual figure by 2.6%.

The INE estimate revealed that Spain's core inflation, excluding fresh food and energy prices, increased by 2.6% annually.

According to Robert Holzmann, a European Central Bank Governing Council member, the institution may slow down its rate cutting campaign due to persistent inflation.

"At the moment, I don't see any interest rate hikes," he said. "However, it's possible that it may take longer for the next interest rate cut to occur."

As Italian lawmakers passed their government's 2025 budget, his comments were made. The budget aims to reduce the country's fiscal deficit to 3% in order to meet EU requirements.

According to a translation by Reuters, France's Finance Minister Eric Lombard stated in an interview published Saturday that the country's upcoming 2025 budget bill would aim for a deficit of just above 5%.

This European markets summary was contributed to by Lee Ying Shan of CNBC and Reuters.