European, U.S. Stock-Index Futures Advance; Asian Shares Climb

By Daniela Silberstein

Oct. 8 (Bloomberg) -- European and U.S. stock-index futures advanced after Alcoa Inc. reported third-quarter earnings that beat analysts’ estimates. Asian shares climbed as employment in Australia unexpectedly surged.

Xstrata Plc, the world’s fourth-largest copper producer, and Antofagasta Plc may rise. Alumina Ltd., Alcoa’s joint- venture partner, added 4.6 percent in Sydney. Lloyds Banking Group Plc may be active as the Financial Times said the lender is considering a 15 billion-pound ($23.9 billion) rights offer.

Futures on the Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 Index, a benchmark gauge for the euro region, rallied 1.3 percent at 7:24 a.m. in London. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index may increase 40, according to Cantor Index, a betting firm.

Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures rose 1 percent, indicating the benchmark measure for U.S. equities may climb for a fourth day. Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum producer, was the first company in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to release third-quarter results.

“A strong finish on Wall Street despite an at-times choppy session combined with a solid Asian session looks set to leave European markets moving higher,” Ben Potter, a research analyst at IG Markets in Melbourne, wrote in a note. “Alcoa added to the upside yesterday, kicking off the third-quarter earnings season in the U.S. on a positive note.”

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index increased 1.1 percent, led by National Australia Bank Ltd., as the country’s statistics bureau said the nation’s jobless rate fell.

Europe’s Stoxx 600 has slipped 2.4 percent from its 2009 high on Sept. 17 as U.S. unemployment, manufacturing and consumer confidence data missed economists’ forecasts, fueling concern the global economic recovery may not be robust.

Central Banks

The European Central Bank and the Bank of England will announce decisions on interest rates today. The central banks will probably leaving their key rates unchanged, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg.

Xstrata and Antofagasta, the copper producer controlled by Chile’s Luksic family, may follow Asian mining companies higher. Alumina, Alcoa’s partner in the world’s biggest producer of the material used to make aluminum, jumped 4.6 percent to A$1.93.

Alcoa’s profit excluding certain items was 4 cents a share, exceeded the average analyst estimate for a 9-cent loss, as metal prices climbed and the company cut jobs.

S&P 500 companies will report a ninth straight quarter of declining profits, the longest streak since the Great Depression, before returning to growth in the final three months of the year, analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg show.

Copper, Oil

Copper gained in London and gold advanced to a record for a third day as the dollar’s slump prompted investors to buy commodities as a hedge against potential inflation. BP Plc might climb after oil rose above $70 a barrel in New York.

National Australia, the country’s third-biggest bank by value, rose 4.4 percent to A$31.35. Two days ago, Australia became the first country in the Group of 20 nations to boost borrowing costs since the start of the credit crisis. The “risk of serious economic contraction” has passed, Glenn Stevens, governor of Australia’s central bank, said the same day.

Lloyds may be active. The U.K.’s biggest mortgage lender is considering a rights offering that may allow it to withdraw entirely from the government’s asset protection program, the Financial Times reported.

Credit Suisse Group AG and Deutsche Bank AG may move. The two banks will probably report third-quarter earnings that exceed market expectations as favorable trading fuels profit, Morgan Stanley said in an Oct. 7 note to investors.

To contact the reporter on this story: Daniela Silberstein in Zurich at dsilberstei2@bloomberg.net.