European, U.S. Stock Futures Rise; Asia Shares Fall for 7th Day

By Sarah Jones

July 9 (Bloomberg) -- European and U.S. stock futures climbed after Alcoa Inc. kicked off the second-quarter earnings season by reporting results that beat analysts’ estimates.

BHP Billiton Ltd. and Anglo American Plc may be active after Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum producer, posted a smaller-than-estimated loss. Daimler AG and PSA Peugeot Citroen may climb after Bank of America Corp. raised European automakers to “overweight” and data showed car sales in China surged the most in more than three years last month.

Futures on the Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 Index added 0.8 percent to 2,300 at 7:19 a.m. in London. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index may open 15 points higher, according to CMC Markets, before the Bank of England announces its decision on interest rates today.

Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures climbed 0.6 percent, indicating the benchmark gauge for U.S. equities may rebound from its lowest level since May 1. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.4 percent today, falling for a seventh straight day for the first time since 2007.

Europe’s Stoxx 600, which yesterday fell for a fifth consecutive day, has retreated 7.8 percent since June 11 on speculation share prices have outpaced the outlook for the economy after a three-month rally pushed valuations to the highest level since 2004.

Second-Quarter Earnings

BHP, the world’s largest mining company, and Anglo American may be active. Alcoa’s results beat estimates after production cuts and workforce reductions helped the company save money. The aluminum producer posted a loss excluding certain items of 26 cents a share, narrower than analysts’ average estimate for a 38-cent loss.

Profits fell an average 34 percent at S&P 500 companies in the second quarter and will decrease 21 percent from July through September, according to analyst projections compiled by Bloomberg. Earnings slumped 33 percent during the first three months of 2009, and plunged 61 percent from October through December 2008.

Daimler and Peugeot may gain. Bank of America raised European automakers to “overweight” from “neutral” on optimism the economy will recover this year.

Separately, China’s passenger-vehicle sales surged 48 percent in June, as government stimulus spending spurred a revival in the world’s third-largest economy.

To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah Jones in London at sjones35@bloomberg.net.