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LONDON – European stock markets fell modestly Wednesday after further dismal economic data and as Wall Street was heading towards a lower opening. Asian markets were higher after Wall Street's rebound the previous session.

AP – An investor reacts in front of a stock price monitor at a private securities company Wednesday, Dec.

The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 61.10 points, or 1.5 percent, at 4,061.76, with heavyweight oil stocks BP PLC and Royal Dutch Shell down 2.4 percent and 2.8 percent respectively as oil prices slid to a new three-year low below $47 a barrel.

Meanwhile Germany's DAX was 108.97 points, or 2.4 percent, lower at 4,422.82. The CAC-40 in France was down 71.98 points, or 2.3 percent, at 3,080.929.

Earlier, Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average rose 140.41 points, or 1.8 percent, to 8,004.10 after a 3.3 percent advance on the Dow Jones industrial average on Tuesday. Benchmark indexes in Hong Kong, China, Australia, Singapore and India also inched higher as investors nibbled on shares after broad declines the day before.

Futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street with Dow futures down 132 points, or 1.6 percent, at 8300 and Standard & Poor's futures off 15.7 points, or 1.9 percent, at 833.30.

So far this week, the markets have been gaining one day and retreating the next as investors await direction. Thursday's interest rate decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England and Friday's closely-watched U.S. non-farm payrolls data for November could provide that direction, analysts said.

"I think it's a little bit of a waiting game ahead of the interest rate decisions tomorrow and the U.S. payrolls on Friday," said David Jones, chief markets strategist at IG Index in London.

"Thursday and Friday could be very volatile sessions," he added.

Europe's indexes have suffered in the wake of grim news around the services sector ahead of Thursday's expected interest rate cuts from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England.

The euro-zone service sector purchasing managers index, or PMI, fell to 42.5 in November, below the preliminary estimate of 43.3 and October's 45.8. November's reading was the lowest in the survey's ten-year history.

Meanwhile, the equivalent survey into the British services sector was even worse. The PMI dropped to 40.1 in November from 42.4 the previous month. November's reading was the lowest since the survey began in 1996.

For both surveys, a reading below 50 indicates contraction and the lower the number below 50 the greater the contraction.

The data has stoked expectations that Europe's two leading central banks may cut interest rates even more aggressively on Thursday as the economic news keeps on coming in worse than anticipated.

While many observers think the European bank will reduce its benchmark rate by half a percentage point to 2.75 percent — with some thinking it may cut by three quarters of a point_ the Bank of England is expected by many to lower its rate by a whole percentage point to 2.00 percent, which would be equal to its lowest since the bank was founded in 1694.

Earlier, Asian automakers were mostly lower Wednesday after U.S. auto sales plunged 37 percent in November to their worst level in more than 26 years. In Tokyo, Toyota Motor Corp. fell 0.9 percent and Honda Motor Corp. slid 4.7 percent. South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. shed 3 percent and Kia Motors Corp. dropped 1.8 percent.

Shares in Australia pared a 2 percent gain to close almost flat after the Australian government announced the economy slowed to growth of just 0.1 percent in the third quarter, the slowest pace in eight years. Qantas Airways was up 4.4 percent on news of merger talks with British Airways.

Shares in Thailand rose 1.6 percent after a court ruling Tuesday dissolved the ruling party for electoral fraud, lancing weeks of heightened political tensions that culminated in protesters occupying Bangkok's two airports. The country's central bank also announced its biggest cut to interest rates in eight years.

South Korea bucked the trend with the key index down 0.1 percent and Taiwan's benchmark fell 1.1 percent

In currency trading, the dollar was 0.3 percent lower at 92.98 yen while the euro was 0.5 percent down at $1.2641.

Meanwhile, oil prices rose slightly after hitting a three-year low overnight as investors try to gauge how much the slowing U.S. and Chinese economies will hurt demand for crude. Light, sweet crude for January delivery was up 22 cents to $47.18 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

NEW YORK – Shoppers, who had snapped their wallets shut since September, flocked to stores and malls before dawn Friday to grab deals on everything from TVs to toys for the traditional start of the holiday shopping season, feared to be the weakest in decades. AP – Shoppers stream into Kohl's after they opened their doors at 4 a.m. on Black Friday in Miramar, Fla. …

Retailers extended their hours — some opening at midnight — and offered deals that promised to be even deeper and wider than even the deep discounts that shoppers found throughout November. Best Buy, which threw its doors open at 5 a.m. offered such early morning specials as a 49-inch Panasonic plasma HDTV for $899.99 and a $189.99 GPS device by Garmin, while Toys "R" Us, was offering up to 60 percent discounts from 5 a.m. to 10 a.m.

But the question remains whether many people will be spending much money on holiday gifts as a recession nears, credit markets remain frozen, layoffs loom and consumer spending shrinks.

At the Best Buy store in Syracuse, N.Y., a line snaked past stores and around walkways on the second floor of Carousel Center a few moments before the store's 5 a.m. opening — about eight hours after some people near the front of the line had arrived.

Rob Schoeneck, the mall's manager, estimated about 1,000 people were waiting for the electronics store to open and said the crowd was about the same size as a year ago. Usually the mall gets the biggest Black Friday lines for electronics, he said.

"I don't understand this, whether the economy is good or bad," he said, referring to the line.

Inside, Kira Carinci, 33, searched for the $80 "Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock" video game and guitar controller bundle for her son.

Carinci, a teacher who lives in Cicero, N.Y., said that this year she is more concerned about money than she was last holiday season, and she set aside a certain amount for Christmas spending this year.

"I don't usually save, so this year is a little different," she said.

Meanwhile, Michaela Kipp, 42, a single mom who works as a dental assistant, arrived at the Best Buy store in Syracuse, N.Y., with her boss' husband because both of them wanted to pick up a new HP desktop computer packages, selling for $600. Kipp also wanted to get a $380 Toshiba laptop for her 17-year-old son. The two got in line at 9 p.m. to ensure they'd get the computers.

Kipp said she'd applied online to get 18 months of interest-free financing for the purchase, and that she hoped to use her income tax return to pay off a good chunk of it.

She estimated that she's spending less than she usually does on holiday gifts.

Still, "the fact that the gas prices have gone down, I feel confident that I can pay off this without any problems," she said.

Meanwhile, Katie Lecompte of Elton, La., drove to the Lake Charles, La., Toys R Us early Friday for half-price deals for seven children below the age of 5.

"We started planning right after we finished the turkey," she said. She added, "We do have a budget. It's basically what we spent last year. We come early because of the half-price sale. We saved $120 last year by coming out early."

Black Friday — which falls on the day after Thanksgiving and officially starts the holiday shopping period — received its name because it historically was the day when a surge of shoppers helped stores break into profitability for the full year. But this year, with rampant promotions of up to 70 percent throughout the month amid a deteriorating economy, the power of this landmark day for the retail industry could be fading.

Still, while it isn't a predictor of holiday season sales, the day after Thanksgiving is an important barometer of people's willingness to spend for the rest of the season. And particularly this year, analysts will dissect how the economy is shaping shoppers' buying habits, including whether they will spring for big-ticket items or focus on small purchases like gloves and hats.

Last year, the Thanksgiving shopping weekend of Friday through Sunday accounted for about 10 percent of overall holiday sales, according to ShopperTrak RCT Corp.

The group hasn't released estimates for Black Friday sales this year, but experts believe it will remain one of the season's biggest selling days, even as shoppers remain deliberate in their spending.

Britt Beemer, chairman of America's Research Group, expects to see the surge of shoppers dramatically taper off throughout the day and into the weekend.

"I think we are going to see the busiest Black Friday ever, but will it carry over past 10 a.m.?" he said. "The bottom line is a great Black Friday does not make a season."

BEIJING, China (AP) -- China announced its biggest interest rate cut in 11 years on Wednesday to spur private borrowing and support a multibillion-dollar stimulus package to boost slowing economic growth.

The European Union's administrative body, meanwhile, urged the bloc's 27 member countries to join together in making euro200 billion (US$256.22 billion) in spending and tax cuts to boost economic growth and bolster the confidence of consumers and businesses.

China's 1.08 percentage-point cut -- the fourth rate reduction in three months -- reflects the government's urgency about raising private consumption and investment to supplement state spending on the stimulus package.

Interest on a one-year loan will fall to 5.58 percent, effective Thursday, while interest paid on deposits will drop to 2.52 percent.

"This is the most aggressive monetary easing in recent years and should bode well for China's market performance," said Jing Ulrich, chairwoman of China equities for JP Morgan & Co., in a report to clients.

The 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus aims to insulate China from the global slowdown by injecting money into the economy through spending on new highways and other public facilities. But its ultimate goal is to increase consumer spending, which a rate cut is meant to encourage.

Beijing is trying to shore up consumer and investor confidence and reverse a sharp downturn in growth. China's economy is expected to expand by at least 9 percent this year, down from 11.9 percent last year. But communist leaders worry about rising job losses -- especially in export industries hit by weak global demand -- and possible unrest.

China has avoided a big hit so far from the global financial crisis because its banks are healthy and exports strong. But conditions are expected to worsen in coming months as export demand weakens and growth in real estate and other domestic industries slows.

Just this week, the World Bank cut its forecast for China's growth next year from 9.2 percent to 7.5 percent, the lowest level since 1990.

Beijing had been rumored to be considering a rate cut and Chinese stock markets fell Monday after one failed to materialize over the weekend. The cut Wednesday was announced after markets closed. The Shanghai Composite index, down two-thirds from its peak in October 2007, edged up 0.5 percent to 1,897.88.

Also Wednesday, the central bank cut the amount of money commercial banks must set aside as reserves, expanding the pool available for lending.

The moves are meant to "promote stable credit growth," the People's Bank of China said on its Web site.

The rate cut was China's biggest since 1997, said Standard Chartered economist Stephen Green. But he cautioned that rate cuts alone might not be enough to trigger a wave of house purchases and corporate investment.

"To be honest, rate policy in this environment is a marginal factor -- businesses think about possible returns on investments, and households will look at house price prospects," he said in a report.

A key issue will be whether banks are willing to lend more. They have tried to shield themselves from global turmoil and the slowing real estate industry by cutting back on lending to exporters, developers and small companies. Watch how some Hong Kong businesses are coping with the financial slowdown »

"The degree of benefit realized from China's monetary stimulus will hinge on whether banks increase their lending to the most troubled sectors of the economy," Ulrich said.

In Brussels, Belgium, the European Commission outlined a two-year "European Economic Recovery Plan" that calls for EU members to spend 1.5 percent of the bloc's gross domestic product to halt a slowdown that has already pushed some European nations into recession.

The spending plan's euro200 billion price tag is much higher than the euro130 billion that EU officials had been discussing in recent weeks.

Some euro170 billion would come from national governments and include tax breaks, credit guarantees for ailing industries and to easy loans to encourage new green technologies. The remainder would be financed from the EU budget and the European Investment Bank.