By Sarah Jones Dec. 8 (Bloomberg) -- European and U.S. stock-index futures rallied after U.S. President-elect Barack Obama pledged the largest infrastructure-spending package since the 1950s to stimulate economic growth. Asian shares advanced. CRH Plc, the world’s second-biggest building materials maker, and Siemens AG may climb as Obama said he’s planning the biggest public works program since President Dwight D. Eisenhower created the interstate highway system. Daimler AG may lead carmakers higher after U.S. lawmakers agreed in principle with the Bush administration on providing funds to prevent the collapse of General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC. Futures on the Dow Jones Euro Stoxx 50 Index, a benchmark for the euro region, added 157, or 7 percent, to 2,406 at 7:32 a.m. in London. The U.K.’s FTSE 100 Index is set to open 192 points higher, according to BGC Partners. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures jumped 2.6 percent. Asian stocks rallied today as India’s central bank lowered interest rates to 6.5 percent and also unveiled a $4 billion stimulus plan yesterday. “A combination of Barack Obama’s New Deal and extra government stimulus across Asia lifted Asian stocks,” said Felix Riley, head of binaries, a type of spread-betting, at ChoiceOdds in London. “Europe should feel the knock-on effects.” CRH may rally in Dublin and Germany’s Siemens, Europe’s largest engineering company, may advance after Obama said on Dec. 6 he will boost investment in roads, bridges and public buildings to create and preserve 2.5 million U.S. jobs. Daimler, the world’s second-biggest producer of luxury cars, and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, the largest luxury-car maker, may gain. Carmaker Bailout U.S. lawmakers are working to hammer out details of legislation to bail out ailing auto companies, after reaching an agreement in principle with the Bush administration. The legislation is taking shape after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi dropped her opposition to drawing on $25 billion in funds from the Energy Department intended to help automakers develop more fuel-efficient vehicles, according to a Democratic aide who declined to be identified. HSBC Holdings Plc may move after Europe’s largest bank said it will increase the amount of money it loans for U.K. home mortgages next year by 20 percent to 15 billion pounds ($22 billion). The announcement came less than a day after the bank created a $5 billion fund to increase access to credit for small and medium-sized businesses. Eni SpA may be active after the Italian government said the Libyan Energy Fund is interested in buying a stake in Italy’s biggest oil company. Il Sole 24 Ore reported yesterday Libya could buy as much as 10 percent of Eni for as much as 9 billion euros ($11.5 billion), citing Libyan Ambassador to Italy Hafed Gaddur. To contact the reporter on this story: Sarah Jones in London at sjones35@bloomberg.net.

Source