European stock markets rose Wednesday as investors started the third quarter with mild optimism after some upbeat economic data, but Asian markets were only mixed after a disappointing business survey in Japan.

The FTSE 100 index in London was up 1.3 percent while the DAX in Frankfurt rose 1.4 percent. The CAC-40 in Paris was up 1.7 percent.

The gains in Europe came after closely watched manufacturing surveys for the 16 countries that use the euro and for Britain raised hopes that growth may emerge later this year.

The purchasing managers index - a gauge of business activity - for the euro zone's manufacturing sector rose for the fourth consecutive month to 42.6 points in June from May's 40.7. Though a reading below 50 still indicates a contraction in activity, the higher reading suggested a less marked fall in output. Meanwhile, the equivalent index for Britain spiked to a 13-month high of 47 points in June from 45.4 in May.

The improved manufacturing backdrop in Europe stoked investors hopes that signs of a tentative recovery spotted during the second quarter may be firmed up in the next three months.

"It's the first day of the third quarter and the bulls have jumped out of the traps with a zing," a market analyst at BGC Partners, David Buik, said.

Wall Street was also poised to open higher after a report that private sector job losses slowed last month.

The ADP National Employment Report said Wednesday that private sector employment fell by 473,000 in June, less than the 532,000 jobs that were shed in May. The ADP report comes a day ahead of the Labor Department's key monthly jobs report.

Thursday is at the forefront of investors' attention as it brings the European Central Bank's latest interest late decision and the closely watched American non-farm payrolls. Analysts expect June's unemployment rate to rise around 0.3 of a percentage point to 9.7 percent - President Obama has warned that it will top 10 percent.

Stocks rose from mid-March until early June on hopes the United States economy in particular would recover from recession sooner than anticipated. Many investors saw fallen stocks as cheap and started buying; however, a run of downbeat economic news brought an abrupt end to the rally and altered the general mood prevailing among investors.

Stocks around the world managed to turn in one of the best quarters in years during the second quarter - the S.& P. 500-share index in the United States, for example, rose around 16 percent in the quarter, its best performance since 1998 - despite worries about the global banking system, the public finances and the length and depth of the recession.

Neil Mackinnon, chief economist at the ECU Group, said it's a "tough call" whether a similar performance can be turned in for the quarter, as investors will now need hard evidence that the world's major economies are improving enough to justify stock valuations.

"There is still the possibility of shocks to the banking sector should the property market fail to recover, thus creating negative feedback loops between the banks and property," Mr. Mackinnon said.

Two surveys earlier suggested that Chinese manufacturing expanded slightly in June in a sign that the world's third-largest economy is slowly rebounding from the collapse in global trade.

CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, a brokerage firm, said its purchasing managers index rose to 51.8 points from May's 51.2, while the state-sanctioned China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said its own index edged up slightly to 53.2 from May's 53.1.

Despite the improving signals out of China, which helped the Shanghai Composite index rise 1.7 percent to 3,008.15 - its first close above the symbolic 3,000 level since June 12, 2008 - Asian stock markets ended were mixed after a weaker-than-expected Tankan business survey from the Bank of Japan.

Though the survey indicated that corporate sentiment had improved modestly, it showed that companies plan to cut capital investment - highlighting the challenges the world's second-biggest economy faces as it climbs out of its steepest recession ever.

After climbing as much as 1 percent, Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 18.51 points, or 0.2 percent, to close at 9,939.93. Hong Kong's market was closed for a holiday.

Oil rose above $71 a barrel as a drop in American crude inventories suggested demand may be picking up. Benchmark crude for August delivery rose $1.26 to $71.15 a barrel in electronic trading in New York.

Inventories dropped by 6.8 million barrels last week, the American Petroleum Institute reported. Investors will be watching for inventory data from the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration on Wednesday for more signs crude demand may be growing.