U.S. stock index futures indicated a lower open Wednesday as investor worries about the health of the financial sector and the overall economy offset the impact of falling commodities prices.

Oil continued its drop early Wednesday as traders focused on expectations of slowing global demand while supply fears abated after Hurricane Gustav spared oil infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico.

Light sweet crude for October delivery was down US$1.35 to US$108.25 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Gold declined US$5.40 to US$805.10 an ounce.

Here at home, most economists expect the Bank of Canada to keep short-term interest rates steady in its policy announcement Wednesday morning, although some have been calling for a quarter-point cut to prod the sluggish economy.

There are no major economic releases from Statistics Canada today.

South of the border, data on U.S. factory orders in July and the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book of economic activity are due for release.

As well, the economic calendar features monthly auto sales for August, which could show the first month-on-month rise since February.

In M&A news, Coca-Cola offered to buy China Huiyuan Juice Group for US$2.4 billion and announced a $1 billion stock buyback.

In Japan, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index gained 0.6% to 12,689.59 as investors took heart from falling oil prices and bought auto shares. The key Japanese index had lost almost 2% Tuesday following the sudden resignation of Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda.

Economic worries weighed on European markets. The FTSE 100 index was down 2.2% early in the afternoon in London, dropping 122.1 points to 5,498.6.

The German DAX pulled back 1% and the Paris CAC 40 fell 1.7% a

On Tuesday, the benchmark index of the Toronto Stock Exchange plunged more than 3% on Tuesday as oil prices fell on fading concerns over the impact from Hurricane Gustav on the U.S. oil industry.

The S&P/TSX composite index tumbled 471.51 points, or 3.42%, to end at 13,299.74.

The TSX energy sector led the decline, off 5.75%.

The junior S&P/TSX Venture composite index dropped 53.92 points, or 2.72%, to 1,923.72.

In New York, U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday, as a steep decline in the price of oil and other commodities hammered energy and materials companies.

The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 26.63 points, or 0.23%, to 11,516.92. The S&P 500 dropped 5.26 points, or 0.41%, to 1,277.57. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite index fell18.28 points, or 0.77%, to 2,349.24.