Europe trading weakly after gains in Asia

(CNN) -- Europe's major stock exchanges were lower in afternoon trading Wednesday after gains in most Asian and Pacific markets.

London's FTSE dipped more than a percent, while the French CAC and Germany's DAX wre off more than two percent.

The declines followed improvements across most Asian markets, which bounced back after a volatile day on Wall Street that ended with a rally.

Tokyo's Nikkei index closed up 1.79 percent, while Australia's All Ordinaries index closed about 0.9 percent higher.

Seoul's KOSPI index closed nearly flat, with a decline of 0.05 percent. But China's Shanghai and Hong Kong markets were up, with the Shanghai Composite index rising 4.01 percent and the Hang Seng finishing the day up 1.36 percent.

In the United States, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 270 points, or 3.3 percent, on Tuesday as investors welcomed signs that Detroit's struggling Big Three automakers may get a bailout. The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 4.0 percent and the Nasdaq composite climbed 3.7 percent.

The automakers were in focus throughout the session, releasing monthly sales results and also submitting their bailout plans to Congress. After having been rebuffed last month, the automakers were again seeking access to billions in taxpayer money.

Tuesday's advance followed a steep plunge Monday, when reports showed November manufacturing activity hit a 26-year low and that the U.S. economy has officially been in a recession since December 2007.

But the day's advance was simply "a bounce off of the previous session's levels," rather than anything more lasting, said Thomas Nyheim, portfolio manager at Christiana Bank & Trust Company.

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