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On a quiet afternoon in Manhattan’s East Village, I’m having lunch inside a monastery while Rasanath Dasa, a banker-turned-monk, tells us about the moment he decided to leave Wall Street.

"My desire to work in Wall Street arose back in 1992, when foreign TV first came to India and I watched Charlie Sheen in the movie Wall Street," he tells the group of five who have traveled to his monastery. "For some reason, the images stuck in my head of ‘man, that’s what I really want to do — that fast-paced life.’"

But the religious life also appealed to Dasa. He joined a monastery while he was still hustling deals on Wall Street for his employer, Bank of America. When he started work on a project for Playboy, the stark contrast between his inner life and his day job became too much.

"At the time that the economy was tanking, I was actually making money selling sex," he says.

He’s a slight man who speaks slowly and carefully, pausing to gather his thoughts as he narrates. He’s sharing his story with us thanks to a startup called SideTour. Almost every week, Dasa hosts a lunch for those who want to chat with him about his journey from Wall Street to the monastery.

Forget daily deals on restaurants and spas, or flash sales on designer clothes. The hot e-commerce trend at the moment is selling one-of-a-kind experiences.

Lunch with Dasa — priced at $20 — is just one offering from SideTour’s lineup. Its roster also includes a race down an ice luge with an Olympic medallist (that’s $150) or a cooking session with the host of NBC’s America’s Next Great Restaurant at his West Village townhouse ($35), among dozens of other options. The company takes a 20% cut when customers pay for an event.

SideTour is far from alone in the market. In the U.S., a key competitor is Zozi, which has raised $11 million from investors and currently operates in more than 60 cities. Germany has a whole pack of startups in the field, including Regiondo, Yasuu and Gidsy, which recently expanded into the San Francisco market.

One notable rival, Vayable, offers up experiences around the globe. Launched in April, the service’s tours range from an exploration of an abandoned Soviet hospital in Berlin to an expert-led wine tasting in Paris.

Vayable founder Jamie Wong attributes the interest in selling experiences in part to the rough job market. More people are finding themselves out of work or in need of a second job.

"I think we’re in an era where both the economy and cultural shifts are really dictating this kind of change, where people are moving more towards a freelance type of lifestyle," Wong says.

SideTour founder Vipin Goyal backs that view. He says his startup gives people the opportunity to make money doing what they love.

"It’s a platform for people to share their expertise and monetize that," he says. "It’s a huge opportunity for folks to supplement their income or to create new sources of income for themselves."

Goyal got the idea for SideTour after he and his spouse left their jobs and bought around-the-world plane tickets for a six-month trip.

"In places that we had local folks to share experiences with, it made all the difference," he says. "In places we didn’t, our own experiences were highly dependent on serendipity."

He came home with the desire to build a platform that would help others connect with those kinds of experiences. Investors flocked to the idea: SideTour landed a spot in incubator TechStars’ first New York cohort this summer, and it recently raised $1.5 million in seed funding. Since launching five months ago, SideTour has hosted 70 experiences, with a 90% sell out rate.

So is this a lasting market or a flashy trend?

Both Wong and Goyal cite studies concluding that experiences, not things, are what make people truly happy.

"People are starting to reevaluate — especially in this economic environment — how they’re spending their money," Goyal says. "I think that’s where you see a lot of this focus on experiences." 

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The French and German leaders are stressing that they view boosting economic growth a priority as they push through with efforts to stem the eurozone’s debt crisis.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Nicolas Sarkozy said Monday that Europe should compare countries’ labor market practices and learn from the best; and they called for European funds to be used in a way that create jobs.

Both leaders also said they’re prepared to consider speeding up payments into the 17-nation eurozone’s permanent rescue fund, the European Stability Mechanism, in an effort to bolster confidence.

They’re calling for a quick conclusion to negotiations on a new treaty enshrining fiscal rules.

Still, Merkel says that resolving the crisis will be “step-by-step … there’s no single-dimension solution.”

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The free credit score industry has been booming since the recession as a lot of people hit hard times and want to keep an eye on how the recession has affected their credit standing.

The holiday shopping season turned out to be two seasons: the Black Friday binge and a last-minute surge.

Together, they added up to decent sales gains for retailers. And the doldrums in between showed how shoppers have learned to wait for the discounts they know will come.

“The days that the American consumer gets excited about 25 percent off are over,” said C. Britt Beemer, chairman of America’s Research Group. “Shoppers are keeping their eye on the ball for the big sales events.”

In November, spending rose 4.1 percent. And from Dec. 1 to Dec. 24, it rose 4.7 percent compared with the same period last year, according to research firm ShopperTrak. A 4 percent increase is considered a healthy season.

The higher sales are good news for the economy, because they show shoppers were willing to fund a holiday splurge despite high unemployment and other lingering economic woes. Consumer spending, including major items such as health care, accounts for 70 percent of the economy.

Still, plenty of people are pinched for cash in the slow economic recovery, and they were seeking the best deals, which could squeeze stores’ profits for the fourth quarter, says Hana Ben-Shabat, a partner in the retail practice of A.T. Kearney, a management consulting firm.

Stores have trained even shoppers who are primed to spend to look for a discount.

Heading into the season, stores were nervous that shoppers would be tight-fisted. Many officially opened the season with discounts on TVs and toys that started as early as Thanksgiving Day. Consumers came out in droves, resulting in record spending.

Then the frenzy tapered off. A mild winter and the fact that Christmas fell on a Sunday encouraged people to wait until the last minute and accentuated the peaks and valleys of spending.

Stores started to push more discounts to get shoppers to spend in the finale. In fact, retailers’ promotional e-mails from Sunday, Dec. 18, to Thursday, Dec. 22, spiked 34 percent, compared with the same period a year ago, according to Responsys, which tracks e-mail activity from more than 100 merchants.

According to Beemer’s consumer surveys, 60 percent of shoppers polled were looking for discounts of more than 50 percent to get them to buy. That’s up from last year’s 51 percent of shoppers polled.

Tracey Spears of Locust Grove, Ga., who was shopping Wednesday at Atlanta’s Lenox Square Mall, said she got 75 percent of her holiday shopping done on Black Friday or the day after Thanksgiving. She took advantage of deals, including a Keurig coffee pot from Target and clothes from Hollister on sale.

“I had more money because I got a better bonus this year, but sales are important. You always want to buy stuff cheaper,” she said.

Spears and others helped to create pronounced waves in spending.

“The downs and ups were much more accentuated,” said Michael P. Niemira, chief economist at the International Council of Shopping Centers. “It just shows how cautious the consumer is. Consumers are bargain hunters more today than ever before.”

In the week before Christmas, last-minute shoppers gave retailers a 4.5 percent increase in revenue over the same week last year at stores open at least a year, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers-Goldman Sachs Weekly Chain Store Sales Index. The index estimates sales at 24 major chain stores including Macy’s Inc. and Costco Wholesale Corp.

Revenue at stores open at least a year is an important measure of a retailer’s performance because it excludes stores that open or close during the year.

Total retail revenue for the week that ended Saturday reached $44 billion, 14.8 percent higher than a year earlier, ShopperTrak estimates.

For the week that ended Nov. 26, which included the traditional start of holiday shopping on the day after Thanksgiving, stores had the biggest sales surge from the week before since 1993, according to the ICSC-Goldman Sachs index.

The post-Black Friday lull was deeper than usual. The two weeks after Thanksgiving weekend showed the biggest percentage sales decline since 2000.

Then, during the final two weeks before Christmas, sales surged again, by the highest rate since 2005, Niemira said.

The season “was good but uneven,” he said.

Stores are expected to benefit when shoppers come back to spend gift cards, because people often spend more than the cards’ value. In addition, gift card sales are recorded only when shoppers redeem them.

People have more money on their cards to spend. According to an ICSC-Goldman Sachs survey of shoppers conducted Sunday, 18 percent of holiday spending went toward gift cards, up from 14.6 percent last year.

A total sales figure for the whole season won’t be available until after Dec. 31. And a fuller holiday spending picture will come Jan. 5, when stores including Target Corp. and Macy’s release December sales figures. Government retail sales data will be released in mid-January.

ICSC said it expects holiday sales for November and December to rise in line with its forecast of 3.5 percent. The National Retail Federation expects total retail sales for November and December combined to increase by 3.8 percent, up from its earlier forecast of 2.8 percent issued back in October. That’s still below the 5.2 percent holiday sales increase in 2010 from the previous year.

As proof that consumers are timing their spending to seek the best bargains, Black Friday was the biggest sales day, as expected, generating sales of $11.4 billion, up 6.6 percent from a year ago, according to ShopperTrak.

But the day after Christmas ranked fourth, behind Black Friday, Friday, Dec. 23, and Saturday, Dec. 17, according to final figures from ShopperTrak founder Bill Martin. Christmas Eve was strong too.

ShopperTrak measures foot traffic in 25,000 stores in the U.S. and blends those figures with economic data and proprietary sales figures from merchants. The data exclude sales from auto dealers, gas stations, restaurants and grocery stores.

“Shoppers are willing to spend when they know the biggest discounts are available,” Martin said.

Brooks Brothers, the upscale men’s and women’s clothier that doesn’t discount before Christmas, learned that this year. The Monday after Christmas, when the company offered discounts up to 40 percent, was a record spending day at its stores and its website.

“The first three weeks leading up to holiday were soft,” Lou Amendola, chief merchandising officer, wrote in an email. “But customers really partook in the after-Christmas sales.”

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The worst drought in Texas’ history has led to the largest-ever one-year decline in the leading cattle-state’s cow herd, raising the likelihood of increased beef prices as the number of animals decline and demand remains strong.

Since Jan. 1, the number of cows in Texas has dropped by about 600,000, a 12 percent decline from the roughly 5 million cows the state had at the beginning of the year, said David Anderson, who monitors beef markets for the Texas AgriLife Extension Service. That’s likely the largest drop in the number of cows any state has ever seen, though Texas had a larger percentage decline from 1934 to 1935, when ranchers were reeling from the Great Depression and Dust Bowl, Anderson said.

Anderson said many cows were moved “somewhere there’s grass,” but lots of others were slaughtered. He said that in Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Louisiana and Arkansas, about 200,000 more cattle were slaughtered this year, a 20 percent increase over last year.

That extra supply could help meet increased demand from China and other countries, but the loss of cows likely will mean fewer cattle in future years.

“Consumers are going to pay more because we’re going to have less beef,” Anderson said. “Fewer cows, calves, less beef production and increasing exports.”

The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that beef prices will increase up to 5.5 in 2012, in part because the number of cattle has declined. That follows a 9 percent increase in beef prices in the past year.

Oklahoma, the nation’s second-largest cattle producer, also saw about a 12 percent drop in cows, Oklahoma State University agriculture economist Derrell Peel said.

Anderson said beef production nationally will be down 4 percent next year.

In Texas, the problem is primarily due to the worst single-year drought in the state’s history. From January through November the state got just 46 percent of its normal rainfall of about 26 inches.

The drought was the result of a La Nina weather pattern, which brings drier than normal conditions to the southwestern states paydayloans. Forecasters have said La Nina is back, meaning another dry year for Texas, Oklahoma and other nearby states.

The lack of rain coupled with blistering summer heat caused pastures to wither, leaving rancher with the choice of buying feed for the cattle or selling them.

Betsy Ross, a 75-year-old rancher from the small central Texas community of Granger, said she sold all but 80 of the 225 grass-fed animals she had in January. With feed costs up 40 percent and her pasture parched, Ross said she didn’t have any other option.

“It’s not a profitable year, heavens no,” she said. “If you can’t keep them on grass when they’re grass fed you’re not going to make any money.”

About 200 miles north in Sulphur Springs, Texas, part-time rancher Dwyatt Bell said producers in his part of the state sold off up to half their herds. Bell said high prices for cattle have helped offset increases expenses, but many ranchers still are struggling to stay afloat.

“It’s been a rough year,” he said.

Across Texas, the drought has caused an estimated $5.2 billion in losses to farmers and livestock producers, and that figure is expected to rise

Nationally, the number of cows has dropped by an estimated 617,000 this year, a 2 percent decline from the 30.9 million animals on Jan. 1. That number would be larger, but states in northern plains such as North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska, increased their cow herd.

Anderson said it’s unclear whether high beef prices would hurt U.S. sales or limit exports. The U.S. is the world third largest consumer of beef per capita at 85.5 pounds per year. Uruguay is first at 137 pounds per capita.

“Exports have been the strongest part of beef demand all year and they’re expected to remain so but higher prices should constrain their growth,” he said.

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LONDON — The collapse of talks aimed at reducing the staggering U.S. budget deficit weighed on world markets Tuesday but failed to stifle a rebound in Europe.

Stocks took a pummeling on Monday after a so-called supercommittee in Congress failed to reach a deal to cut the U.S. federal budget deficit by $1.2 trillion over 10 years. While not entirely unexpected, the failure heightened worries that political bickering — in the U.S. and Europe — will hurt efforts to cut debt during a period of declining economic growth.

European countries are locked in a debate over how to provide a lasting solution to their debt crisis, which is causing borrowing rates to rise to dangerous highs for ever-larger countries.

Many countries would like the European Central Bank to step up its bond purchases, which have the effect of keeping down borrowing rates. It currently buys bonds in limited amounts, but experts say it needs to expand the program significantly if it is to be effective.

Germany, however, opposes such a move for fear it would create inflation and saddle the central bank with bad loans.

Berlin is also against issuing eurobonds — debt backed by all 17 eurozone nations — that the European Commission is pushing for this week. Chancellor Angela Merkel is worried it would expose German taxpayers to irresponsible spending in other countries and erode pressure on governments to reform their economies.

As the leaders struggle to find common ground, the markets remained on edge.

Spain was forced to pay sharply higher interest rates in an auction of short-term debt, suggesting investor remain wary of the country’s financial prospects despite a new, center-right government coming to power this week.

European stocks were up slightly after huge losses on Monday, as some investors sought bargains. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.6 percent to 5,251.46 while Germany’s DAX rose 1.1 percent to 5,664.73 and France’s CAC-40 gained 1.0 percent to 2,922.81.

Wall Street was headed for a soft opening, with Dow Jones industrial futures flat to 11,519 and S&P 500 futures up 0.5 percent at 1,196.

Shares in Asia struggled to make headway after Monday’s losses on Wall Street. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.4 percent to 8,314.74, its lowest close since March 2009.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.7 percent to 4,133. China’s Shanghai Composite Index edged 0.1 percent lower to 2,412.63. Benchmarks in Taiwan, Malaysia and New Zealand also fell.

But Hong Kong’s Hang Seng erased early losses, rising 0.1 percent to end at 18,251.59 and South Korea’s Kospi index rose 0.3 percent to 1,826.28.

Clouds are gathering in Asia, where Singapore — seen as a bellwether of Western demand because of its very high reliance on trade — said Monday its economy would likely suffer a sharp slowdown in 2012 as export orders from developed countries wane.

“I think we are looking at maybe 2 percent growth for the entire world. For a normal year, global economic growth will be like 4 percent, but now it has to revise down to about 2 percent, so you are taking out a big chunk of the GDP … around the world,” said Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong.

Losses among Asian stocks were broad-based and included banks and consumer shares.

Hong Kong-listed China Construction Bank and Australia & New Zealand Banking Group both fell 1.1 percent. Hong Kong-listed GOME Electrical Appliances slid 1.9 percent and China Garments Co. lost 2.3 percent.

Mainland Chinese shares in power, food and travel companies led the gains while shares in chemical, aviation and auto companies weakened. Air China Ltd. lost 5.5 percent while Bright Food (Group) Co. gained 3 percent.

In currency trading, the euro rose to $1.3533 from $1.3496 late Monday in New York. The dollar was roughly unchanged at 76.93 yen.

Benchmark crude for January delivery was up 93 cents at $97.85 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 75 cents to settle at $96.92 in New York on Monday.

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Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti of Italy says he is ready to present his new government to the president on Wednesday after winning wide backing from political, business and union leaders.

Monti expressed his “serenity” and “conviction” in Italy’s ability to overcome the difficult phase of its economic crisis. He told reporters Tuesday evening that he had received assurances from various parties that they would endure sacrifices for the greater good of the country.

The economics professor tapped to head Italy’s next government has been holding intense talks for two days, seeking support for his mission to steer the eurozone’s third-largest economy through its debt crisis.

Monti’s government must then win confidence votes in both houses of Parliament, expected later this week.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

ROME (AP) _ Italy’s prime minister-designate is ready to present his new government on Wednesday after winning wide backing from political, business and union leaders for his Cabinet and economic reforms during intense consultations aimed at steering the euro zone’s third-largest economy through its debt crisis.

Italian news reports said Monti would present details of his government on Wednesday morning. Monti’s government must then win confidence votes in both houses of Parliament, expected this week.

Monti, a respected economist and former European commissioner, is under pressure to quickly reassure markets that Italy will avoid a default that could tear apart the 17 countries that use the euro currency and push the global economy back into recession.

Monti, 68, has already shown his determination to press through deep reforms by making it clear he intends to serve until regularly scheduled elections in 2013, rejecting calls for an early vote.

On Tuesday, after rounds of meetings, Monti garnered support from the center-left Democratic Party, Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party and the Confindustria, a powerful business lobby.

“We strongly support the birth of this government because for us it is the last chance to regain credibility,” Confindustria leader Emma Marcegaglia said.

Union leader Raffaele Bonanni said Monti was close to completing his Cabinet at the time of their meeting Tuesday afternoon.

“Monti told us that he has reached an agreement with the main political forces that will give him a consistent parliamentary majority that will support him and he will very quickly be in a position to present the list of ministers,” said Bonanni, leader of the powerful CISL union no credit check payday loans.

Despite reports of progress, European markets closed lower Tuesday as investors worried that politicians might pull their support in the future if austerity measures proved unpalatable.

Amid the uncertainty, the yield on Italy’s 10-year bonds jumped again to 6.94 percent. Last week’s spike above 7 percent _ a level considered unsustainable in the long term _ raised fears Italy would eventually need a bailout like Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

But a financial debacle in Italy raises a whole new set of problems, because the country is considered too big for Europe to bail out.

Monti was asked to form a government Sunday after Berlusconi resigned amid weeks of market turmoil over Italy’s stagnant growth and high public debt, which at euro1.9 trillion ($2.6 trillion) is nearly 120 percent of GDP.

Many of those debts are coming due soon, with Italy having to roll over more than euro300 billion ($410 billion) of its debts next year alone.

Monti met Tuesday with the head of the Democratic Party and Angelino Alfano, leader of the Peoples of Freedom party.

“We think, in light of the facts and after this latest conversation, that Professor Monti’s attempts are destined to turn out well,” Alfano told reporters afterward.

Previously, his party had conditioned its support on the shape of Monti’s cabinet, his government agenda and the duration of his term.

Pierluigi Bersani, head of the Democratic Party, pledged support and placed no timeframe on Monti’s tenure.

Only the Northern League, Berlusconi’s allies, have refused to support his government. They wanted early elections this spring, something Monti has rejected.

The EU, meanwhile, says said new measures will be necessary for Italy to balance its budget as promised by 2013. The eurozone avoided contracting in the third quarter, thanks mainly to Germany and France, but is widely expected to fall into recession imminently as a result of its raging debt crisis.

Monti says Italians will have to make some sacrifices to get through the crisis but “not tears and blood.”

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Greece’s incoming prime minister is due to name his cabinet Friday, a day after being appointed to head an interim coalition government that will push through a new European debt deal and secure continued bailout funding to prevent a catastrophic default.

Former European Central Bank vice president Lucas Papademos held talks with the country’s main political parties late into Thursday night to determine who would staff his cabinet, ahead of the formal swearing in early Friday afternoon.

Papademos’ appointment capped two weeks of a political crisis that threatened to derail an EU plan to get a grip on the Greek debt crisis and raised questions about the country’s continued presence in the eurozone.

He was named to take over from outgoing prime Minister George Papandreou, who agreed to step aside half way through his four-year term.

Although the composition of the new cabinet had not been announced by midmorning, many key ministerial positions were expected to remain unchanged, with Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos widely expected to retain his post.

Venizelos was deeply involved in negotiating the latest debt deal _ a package agreed as recently as Oct. 27. The euro130 billion ($177 billion) debt deal took months to work out, and includes provisions for private bondholders to forgive 50 percent _ or some euro100 billion _ of their Greek debt holdings.

The latest political turmoil was sparked by Papandreou’s Oct. 31 surprise announcement that he would put the deal to a referendum. His plan infuriated European leaders, rocked global markets and led many of his own Socialist party lawmakers to rebel and call for his resignation.

Papandreou withdrew the public vote plan after the main conservative opposition said they backed the deal, and agreed to step aside.

After days of intense power-sharing talks, Papandreou’s Socialists and the conservatives, led by Antonis Samaras, along with a smaller right-wing party, appointed Papademos as interim premier.

Papademos’ government will be called on to pass the debt deal and secure the next euro8 billion installment of the country’s initial euro110 billion bailout. Without the funds, Greece will default in a matter of weeks.

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Ireland announced a deepening austerity drive Friday, committing itself to cut euro3.8 billion ($5.2 billion) from its 2012 deficit and to keep increasing taxes and slashing spending through 2015 to meet the terms of its international bailout.

Finance Minister Michael Noonan said the rising level of cuts and tax increases outlined in his 2012-15 fiscal plan are needed for Ireland to claw its 2015 deficit back within 3 percent of gross domestic product, the key target in last year’s bailout deal.

“The large gap that still exists between government spending and revenue must be closed,” Noonan told a Department of Finance press conference. “Continuing to run big deficits and engaging in the high levels of borrowing required to fund them is simply not viable. To do so would result in unsustainable debt and a long-term loss of sovereignty.”

Ireland in November 2010 was forced to negotiate a potential euro67.5 billion ($92 billion) credit line from the European Union and International Monetary Fund after the nation reached the brink of bankruptcy over its runaway bank-rescue program. Ireland already has drawn down nearly half of that funding. EU and IMF monitors have lauded Ireland’s commitment to fight its deficits as part of the deal.

Even before seeking international aid, Ireland was the first of Europe’s debt-struck nations to impose emergency austerity budgets after its ill-regulated banks began to buckle in 2008 amid imploding property markets in Ireland, Britain and the United States. Irish banks were exceptional risk-takers in all three markets. The government ended up nationalizing five banks at a cost to taxpayers expected to top euro70 billion ($100 billion).

The planned 2012-15 cuts run deeper than previously expected, in part, because Ireland has trimmed its growth forecasts in line with continued depression in consumer demand and rising uncertainty in its key American and European export markets.

Ireland lowered its 2012 growth projection to just 1.6 percent versus previous expectations of 2.5 percent. Average growth for 2013-15 also was reduced from 3 percent to 2.8 percent, a figure that many economists said still looked too rosy.

Friday’s plan presumes that consumer demand will not recover soon in a country where households often are fearful of losing their jobs, mired in negative-equity mortgages, and struggling to pay rising bills on reduced incomes.

It expects consumer demand to keep declining a further 1 percent next year, versus a previous assumption of flat growth. And demand in 2013 now is expected to be flat, versus previous hopes of a 1 percent uptick.

Noonan said deficit reduction in 2012, to be detailed in his budget Dec. 6, would involve euro1.6 billion in tax increases and euro2.2 billion in spending cuts.

He said a further euro3.5 billion would be cut from the 2013 deficit, euro3.1 billion in 2014, and euro2 billion in 2015. In total, the planned euro12.4 billion in deficit cuts over the next four years would involve euro4.65 billion in tax increases _ or more than euro1,000 for every man, woman and child in Ireland.

Such cuts, he said, were forecast to reduce Ireland’s deficit for 2012 to 8.6 percent of GDP; for 2013 to 7.5 percent; 2014 to 5.1 percent; and 2015 to 2.9 percent.

Noonan conceded that the cutting and tax hikes were suppressing economic growth, but said Ireland had no choice but to bite the bullet hard. He said Ireland’s unemployment rate, currently near a 17-year high of 14.4 percent, would improve only once consumer spending grows from 2014 onward.

“The likelihood is that exports will remain the only significant source of positive momentum in the economy for the next couple of years,” he said, referring to Ireland’s 1,000-strong stable of foreign high-tech companies, which generate a growing proportion of tax revenues but relatively few jobs.

Business leaders welcomed the size of the planned deficit cuts as necessary, but warned that the government should press harder for spending cuts, rather than hiking taxes.

“International evidence shows that tax-based austerity is more harmful to economic growth and employment than current expenditure reductions,” said Danny McCoy, director of the Irish Business and Employers Confederation, the main lobbying group for Ireland’s more than 7,000 businesses.

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European stock markets shot higher Thursday as investors waded into riskier assets, emboldened by EU leaders’ pre-dawn agreement to slash Greece’s massive debts.

Oil prices rose above $92 per barrel while the euro gained strongly following the European summit dedicated to fixing a debt mess in Greece before it provokes a bigger debt crisis across the continent.

European trading was buoyant from the outset. Britain’s FTSE climbed 2.1 percent to 5,670.12. Germany’s DAX jumped 3.7 percent to 6,243 and France’s CAC-40 gained 3.9 percent to 3,297. Wall Street also headed toward gains, with Dow Jones industrial futures rising 1.6 percent and S&P 500 futures gaining 1.8 percent.

The Greek market rallied on hopes the early morning deal would finally lift the specter of government bankruptcy.

Shortly after opening Thursday, shares on the Athens Stock Exchange were up 3.46 percent at 800.55, with banking stocks up more than 10 percent _ after suffering heavy losses earlier this week.

The hard-fought European deal requires banks to take on 50 percent losses on Greeks bonds. Eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund will also provide an additional euro100 billion ($140 billion) in rescue loans as a second bailout package for Greece.

EU leaders “stopped the hemorrhaging,” said Marc Touati, chief economist at Assya Compagnie Financiere in Paris. “(They) have saved the Eurozone and that’s the good news and that’s why the markets are reacting positively.”

European leaders agreed early Thursday on a plan to provide Greece with more rescue loans to help relieve its crushing debt obligations. It will involve private investors taking bigger losses on the value of their Greek bonds, which would make Greece the first nation that uses the euro currency to be rated in default on its debt.

European Union President Herman Van Rompuy said the deal will reduce Greece’s debt to 120 percent of its gross domestic product in 2020. Under current conditions, it would have grown to 180 percent.

In addition, the euro440 billion European Financial Stability Facility will be used to insure part of the losses on the debt of wobbly countries like Italy and Spain, rendering its firepower equivalent to around euro1 trillion ($1 paydayloans.4 trillion).

Loose ends still need to be worked out, and the fundamental problem of low economic growth in the euro zone has not been resolved by the crisis summit, some economists warned.

“(They) have only saved it temporarily,” Touati said. “Unfortunately the fundamental problem concerning the absence of growth has not been resolved.”

Shares in Asia posted solid gains earlier in the day. Japan’s Nikkei 225 index rose 2 percent to close at an eight-week high of 8,926.54. South Korea’s Kospi added 1.5 percent to 1,922.04. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 3.3 percent to 19,688.70.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 jumped 2.5 percent to 4,348.20 after trading resumed following a 4-hour technical glitch.

Meanwhile, strong economic reports helped send Wall Street higher on Wednesday.

The Dow Jones industrial average gained 1.4 percent to 11,869.04. The S&P 500 index rose 1.1 percent to 1,242. The Nasdaq composite added 0.5 percent to 2,650.67.

Reports in the U.S. showed businesses ordered more heavy machinery and other long-lasting manufactured goods last month. That indicates businesses are still spending on equipment despite worries about a weak economy and Europe’s debt problems. Sales of new homes rose in September after falling for four straight months.

Benchmark crude for December delivery was up $1.98 at $92.15 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell $2.97, or 3.2 percent, to end the day at $90.20 in New York on Wednesday.

Brent crude was up $1.87 at $110.78 a barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange in London.

In currencies, the euro climbed to $1.4003 from $1.3908 late Wednesday in New York. The dollar weakened to 75.83 yen from 76.20 yen.

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President Barack Obama says he’s waiting until more Republican presidential hopefuls are “voted off the island” before he starts tuning into the GOP race.

During an appearance on NBC’s “Tonight Show,” Obama says once the field of contenders aiming to replace him is narrowed down to one or two, he’ll start paying attention.

The president taped his appearance with Jay Leno Tuesday morning in Los Angeles before heading north to San Francisco for a campaign fundraiser.

Obama also addressed the recent killing of Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, the end of the war in Iraq and the NBA lockout during his appearance on Leno’s show. The full interview is scheduled to air late Tuesday night.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

President Barack Obama is making the rounds in reliably Democratic California, joking with Jay Leno and tapping the coffers of wealthy, celebrity donors as he raises money for his re-election bid.

The president taped an appearance on “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” that was scheduled to air Tuesday night. It’s his second stop on the show as sitting president and fourth appearance overall. From Los Angeles, Obama headed north to San Francisco for a fundraiser featuring a performance by folk rock singer-songwriter Jack Johnson. Obama also had fundraisers scheduled in Denver, all part of a three-day, three-state swing through the west.

Tuesday’s fundraisers follow star-studded campaign events in Los Angeles on Monday. Obama joined actor Will Smith and basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson at a dinner at the home of producer James Lassiter. Then he mingled with Melanie Griffith and Antonio Banderas over canapes at the movie star couple’s home just a few blocks away.

Obama was in California for money events last month. The state ranks as Obama’s top donor state, and he raised about $1 million in the Los Angeles area alone during the last two fundraising quarters, according to an Associated Press review of contributions above $200.

The western tour is one of Obama’s busiest donor outreach trips of the season. Celebrities are tried and true fundraising draw, particularly for Democratic presidents. Both the president and the stars bask in their reflected fame and the endorsement of stars can be a useful asset.

Not that he needs the votes here. California is a solidly Democratic state, though Sacramento-based Democratic consultant Roger Salazar said the president, echoing national trends, is less popular now in the state than he was when he was elected.

“Democrats by their nature are going to give the president the benefit of the doubt,” said Salazar, a veteran of California and national political campaigns. “But they want him to do something about it. They want to see some movement.”

Obama is promising some movement. He has been promoting his $447 billion jobs bill, which has been broken up into its component parts in hopes Congress can pass some of them business cards design.

Addressing about 240 donors at the Bellagio hotel and casino in Las Vegas Monday, Obama said the pieces that Republicans reject would likely linger as campaign issues in 2012.

“This is the fight that we’re going to have right now, and I suspect this is the fight that we’re going to have to have over the next year,” Obama said. “The Republicans in Congress and the Republican candidates for president have made their agenda very clear.”

Addressing donors in Los Angeles, Obama ticked off his administration’s accomplishments, eager to reinvigorate supporters whose enthusiasm has flagged since his 2008 election.

“Sometimes I think people forget how much has gotten done,” the president said, as Smith and Johnson looked on. He urged his backers to rally once again, at the same time joking, as he often does, that he is older and grayer now. “This election won’t be as sexy as the first one.”

At Banderas’ and Griffith’s house, its entrance path lined with rose petals and votive candles, Obama told about 120 mostly Latino contributors that he has kept a list of his campaign promises and that, by his count, he has accomplished about 60 percent of them.

“I’m pretty confident we can get the other 40 percent done in the next five years,” he said to loud applause.

The Griffith-Banderas event was Obama’s first Latino fundraiser, with donors giving at least $5,000 per person to attend. It featured guests such as actress Eva Longoria, comedian George Lopez, Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and mayors Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles and Julian Castro of San Antonio.

Obama drew the loudest applause when he vowed to tackle an overhaul of immigration laws, a promise from 2008 that has gone unfulfilled in the face of Republican opposition.

The Las Vegas fundraiser attracted about 240 people who paid from $1,000 to $35,800 toward Obama’s re-election campaign and to the Democratic National Committee. The bigger donors met the president personally. Guests at Lassiter’s home contributed $35,800.

Obama has been displaying campaign-style vigor. At a Las Vegas subdivision where he promoted housing proposals, Obama waded into the neighborhood crowd to shake hands, sign autographs, even lift a baby.

Upon arriving in Los Angeles, Obama headed to a diverse neighborhood minutes from Lassiter’s home south of Hollywood and stopped at Roscoe’s, a popular Los Angeles chicken restaurant chain. Obama roved through the dining booths greeting customers, leaving at least one awestruck young boy holding his hand aloft after shaking the president’s hand. One man gave him a hug and a Hispanic man told his daughter that if she studied hard “you’ll be like him.”

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Associated Press writer Jack Gillum contributed to this report.

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