Stocks are expected to open higher this morning, as investors anticipate a probable cut to U.S. interest rates this afternoon.

As well, tech stocks are getting a boost from mobile phone giant Nokia Oyj, which says it may beat its fourth-quarter earnings target.

Here at home, industrial capacity utilization rates slipped for the fifth consecutive quarter to 79.4% in the third quarter. This is down 2.5% from a revised 81.9% in the second quarter, the largest single-quarter decline on record.

The rate fell because of slumping demand in the high tech sector and lower demand for auto products. Rates of capacity use dropped in all resource groups, such as forestry and logging; mining and oil and gas extraction; electric power generation, transmission and distribution; construction; and most of the industry groups in the manufacturing sector.

European stocks are mixed this morning. Nokia is boosting the techs, but reports that both French and U.K. consumer prices unexpectedly fell in November has traders worried about those economies.

Also, Italian auto giant Fiat SpA is down on news that it is selling US$2.2 billion worth of bonds exchangeable for stock in General Motors Corp. The deal suggests that Fiat may be getting out of GM.

The FTSE is down six points to 5,179. The CAC 40 is off by a point to 4,555. The DAX is up 10 points though to 5,134.

Overnight in Asia, stocks followed U.S. markets down. The Nikkei lost 97 points to 10,474. The Hang Seng is down 92 points to 11,693.

In other business news, Mosaic Group Inc. has reached an agreement with its bankers to extend its existing credit facility by one year to October 5, 2004. It has reduced the amount committed under the senior credit facility from $400 million to $300 million. It will be reduced by a further $25 million in each of October of 2002 and October of 2003.