LONDON, Dec 10 (Reuters) - European equities were expected to open fractionally higher on Monday to trade near the previous session's 18-month highs, with encouraging Chinese factory data and a U.S. jobs report improving the global economic outlook. However, political uncertainties in highly indebted Italy, which is trying hard to bring its economy back on track, and slow progress in talks to avert the U.S. "fiscal cliff" of $600 billion in spending cuts and tax increases from the new year w