World markets kept in check by doubts over growth

World stock markets were mostly higher Tuesday but gains were kept in check by a cloudy outlook for the global economy.

In early European trading, France's CAC 40 was up 0.6 percent at 4,402.22 and Germany's DAX gained 0.2 percent to 9,983.22. Britain's FTSE 100 jumped 1 percent to 6,723.19. Wall Street was set to recover some of the ground it lost Monday. Dow and S&P 500 futures were both up 0.3 percent.

Markets were absorbing a number of unsettling trends including further weakness in China's economy, weak holiday retail sales in the U.S. and the slump in oil prices. Faltering recoveries in Europe and Japan add to the picture of an anemic global economy. Meanwhile, the drop in oil prices from above $100 a barrel to below $70 is putting stress on oil-exporting nations, Russia particularly, which is already under strain from Western sanctions over its backing of the rebellion in eastern Ukraine.

"There continue to be questions around whether this is merely a dead cat bounce. Given the wild swings we saw yesterday, this could certainly be the case and I don't think anyone would be surprised to see these gains reverse again tomorrow," said IG strategist Stan Shamu. "The reality is global growth concerns are a real threat and unless central banks step up easing efforts, things are likely to get worse before getting better."

Asian stocks started out in negative territory but many markets reversed their losses. Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average closed up 0.4 percent at 17,663.22 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.2 percent to 23,654.30. Seoul's Kospi was little changed at 1,965.83 Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.4 percent to 5,281.30 as metal prices rose off recent lows. Markets in Singapore, the Philippines and Indonesia were higher while Thailand and India fell.

The front-month U.S. crude futures contract was down 55 cents at $68.45 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. On Monday, it jumped $2.85 to close at an even $69 as it rebounded from a rout that had knocked about $40 off the price of a barrel of crude since June. Analysts still expect oil prices to remain weak given OPEC's decision last week to maintain its current production targets. That, combined with rising production in the U.S., has created an oversupplied oil market.

The dollar rose to 118.82 yen from 118.27 yen late Monday. The euro fell to $1.2442 from $1.2475.