Collective global box-office takings of nine major territories fell 17% this week compared to the same week last year, largely due to drops in North America, France and South Korea, according to the Screen International Screen Index.

This week, North America saw a 19.3% dip in its top 30 films as it failed to cross the $100m mark at the weekend, grossing just $95.3m. The only opener was thriller The Hitcher, produced by Michael Bay, which took $7.8m, coming in at number 4. Last year's number one, Underworld: Evolution - one of five new openers - grossed $26.8m, a notable 54% decrease from this week's top film Stomp The Yard.

South Korea fell by 15.7% year-on-year after local sequel Mapado 2 failed to match last year's impressive top opener My Boss, My Teacher. Mapado 2 took $3.2m this week, while My Boss, My Teacher generated a whopping $6.9m in its first week last year, a decrease of 54%. Last year's top three films, including King And The Clown and Holiday - all local films - raked in $12.9m, more than the collective total of this week's top eight.

French cinemas also dropped by 15% despite recent success with local films. This week's opener The Serpent grossed $2.1m while last year saw Je Vous Trouve Tres Beau generate $3.2m. The residual benefits of studio blockbusters such as The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, King Kong and Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire carried last year's French cinemas while this week's takings suffered marginally from lower opening grosses from Paramount 's Stranger Than Fiction and Sandrew Metronome's Harsh Times.

But Italy saw another successful week - the territory was up 49.4% from last year after the opening of local sequel Manuale D'Amore 2 grossed $8m, a massive 120% increase on last year's number one Ecezziunale Veramente: Capitolo Secondo...Me.

The UK was up 23.6% thanks to Rocky Balboa entering the ring and taking $7m over the three-day period. Germany welcomed the The Pursuit Of Happyness with open arms as the film's $3.1m weekend total helped its 21.7% increase on last year.

Mexican cinemas were boosted by 18% by its top three films Night At The Museum, Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer and Rocky Balboa, which generated a collective total over $3m accounting for 57% of the top ten's revenues this weekend.

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