European stocks rose as higher metal prices boosted raw-material shares and companies from Inditex SA (ITX) to UniCredit SpA (UCG) reported earnings that topped estimates. U.S. index futures climbed, while Asian shares fell. Rio Tinto Group led basic-resource companies higher. Inditex, the world’s largest clothing retailer, and UniCredit, Italy’s biggest bank, gained more than 2 percent. Eurasian Natural Resources Corp., a Kazakh ferroalloy producer, rallied 4.3 percent as full-year profit more than doubled. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index advanced 0.5 percent to 273.02 at 11:03 a.m. in London, erasing an earlier drop. The gauge extended gains as Bank of England policy makers voted 6-3 to keep interest rates on hold, saying they saw “merit in waiting” to assess the impact of rising oil on inflation. “There are opportunities to take advantage of some cheaper prices in equities given the drop since the end of February,” said Henk Potts, an equity strategist at Barclays Wealth in London, which oversees $239 billion. “We believe the fundamentals look strong for equity markets and valuations are still below 10-year averages.” The Stoxx 600 has fallen 6.2 percent from this year’s highest level on Feb. 17 as Libya’s Muammar Qaddafi sought to quash a revolt aimed at ending his 41 years in power, sending oil surging, and Japan battled to stop its Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant from leaking radiation following the March 11 earthquake. The drop has pulled the gauge’s valuation to about 11 times estimated profit, near the cheapest since April 2009. U.S., Asian Shares Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures expiring in June rose 0.3 percent today before a report on new home sales. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.2 percent as Japan’s government estimated the damage from this month’s record earthquake and tsunami at as much as 25 trillion yen ($309 billion), an amount almost four times the hit imposed by Hurricane Katrina. Tokyo authorities said infants should avoid drinking tap water after finding traces of iodine. Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne will increase the level at which British workers begin paying tax and offer support for first-time homebuyers in his budget at 12:30 p.m. in London today, a person with knowledge of the plans said. The measures are an effort by Prime Minister David Cameron’s government to reverse a slump in consumer confidence caused by accelerating inflation, increasing unemployment and the threat of higher interest rates. Portugal Deficit Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates faces a vote in parliament on his deficit-cutting plan at 3 p.m. Lisbon time. The opposition Social Democratic and Communist parties both pledged yesterday to table resolutions against the proposals, a move which may push the country toward early elections and the need for a European Union bailout. Rio Tinto, the world’s third-largest mining company, advanced 2.2 percent to 4,101 pence. Xstrata Plc (XTA) gained 2.6 percent to 1,409.5 pence. Copper, lead, nickel and tin climbed on the London Metal Exchange. ENRC surged 4.3 percent to 937 pence. The London-based company said net income advanced to $2.19 billion in 2010, topping the $1.92 billion average estimate of five analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Inditex gained 5.3 percent to 56.86 euros after owner of the Zara chain said fourth-quarter net income advanced 14 percent, beating analyst estimates, as it sold more clothing and opened stores in Asia. UniCredit climbed 2 percent to 1.79 euros as the Italian bank reported fourth-quarter net income of 321 million euros ($455 million). That beat the 209 million-euro average estimate of 13 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Bayerische Motoren Werke AG (BMW) rose 2 percent to 55.68 euros as Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. upgraded the automaker to “outperform” from “market perform.” J Sainsbury Plc (SBRY) sank 5.8 percent to 333.7 pence as the U.K.’s third-largest supermarket owner said sales slowed more than analysts anticipated. To contact the reporter on this story: Adam Haigh in London at ahaigh1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Rummer at arummer@bloomberg.net

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