Pressure is growing on the European Central Bank to make a big cut in interest rates next week to help contain the global financial crisis.
Economic sentiment in Europe's single currency zone hit 15-year lows in November and inflation expectations plunged.
Commerzbank economist Christoph Weil said a rate cut on a scale of 75 basis points was envisaged, to 2.5%.
The ECB's current rate is 3.25%.
The Bank of England is also expected to cut rates by 50 points or more on 4 December. The BoE's current rate is 3.25%.
In the United States, the Federal Reserve has already lowered its interest rate to 1%.
In China, the central bank cut interest rates on Wednesday for the fourth time since mid-September in response to the crisis.
The People's Bank of China lowered the rate to 5.58% from 6.66% - the biggest cut in the cost of borrowing in China since October 1997, during the Asian financial crisis.