U.S. stock-index futures fluctuated as the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index headed for its first weekly decline in three weeks on speculation a two-month rally may have outpaced earnings and economic growth.
Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. jumped 8.4 percent in Europe after the U.S. Treasury granted six insurers access to government assistance.Blockbuster Inc., the largest movie- rental chain, plunged 23 percent in extended New York trading yesterday after reporting first-quarter sales that trailed analysts’ estimates.
Futures on the S&P 500 expiring in June rose 0.1 percent to 890.7 at 9:55 a.m. in London following a 3.9 percent decline for the measure so far this week. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 0.2 percent to 8,306. Nasdaq-100 Index futures advanced less than 0.1 percent to 1,354.25.
The S&P 500 has rallied 32 percent since March 9 as expectations for a recovery in the global economy and better- than-estimated earnings at companies from Ford Motor Co. to Citigroup Inc. fueled speculation the worst of the financial crisis is over. The benchmark index for U.S. equities traded at 15.1 times the earnings of its companies at the end of last week, the highest in five months.
UBS AG recommended investors reduce their holdings of stocks, saying hopes of an economic recovery are “likely to fade.” The brokerage cut its global equities allocation to “neutral” from “overweight.”
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