Tens of masked youths attacked firemen who came to extinguish the flames, with stones and pieces of metal.
The fire spread from two burning cars to the shop on a street running beside the esplanade, which is near France’s foreign ministry.
Masked gangs smashed the windows of a car-hire business.
Police were trying to clear the esplanade of student demonstrators to isolate the groups of rioters.
Nearby bridges over the River Seine were sealed off.
A spokesman said police were under orders to arrest the rioters.
Some 23,000 young people took part in the demonstration against the government’s First Employment Contract, according to a police count. —-AFP