By Stephen Kirkland June 9 (Bloomberg) -- The euro strengthened and the dollar weakened on speculation the European Central Bank will signal more interest-rate increases today. U.S. stock-index futures advanced and oil gained. The euro appreciated 0.2 percent to $1.4615 at 10:20 a.m. in London. The New Zealand dollar climbed against 16 major currencies tracked by Bloomberg. The yield on the Greek 10-year bond jumped 16 basis points, and Portuguese two-year yields increased 31 basis points. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index advanced 0.3 percent and the Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped less than 0.1 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index sank 1.7 percent. Crude oil rose 0.6 percent. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet may indicate today that policy makers will raise interest rates next month to contain inflation. New Zealand’s central bank said borrowing costs will need to increase in the next two years. Brazil lifted rates for a fourth straight meeting yesterday. “A July rate-hike signal today is certainly what the financial markets are positioned for,” Derek Halpenny, European head of currency research at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in London, wrote in a note. It will “also reinforce the credibility of the ECB that strives to highlight to the markets that its role is to deliver price stability, not solve the euro- zone debt crisis.” Europe’s 17-nation currency jumped 0.5 percent versus the yen, appreciating the most against the Australian dollar and South Korean won among 16 major currencies. The ECB is likely to leave its main refinancing rate at 1.25 percent today, according to all 52 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Bank of England The New Zealand dollar jumped 0.9 percent versus its U.S. counterpart after the central bank said commodity prices remain “very strong.” The pound rose 0.3 percent against the dollar. The Bank of England will probably keep its main rate at a record low of 0.5 percent. The Dollar Index, which tracks the currency against those of six U.S. trading partners, fell 0.2 percent. The gain in S&P 500 futures indicated the U.S. benchmark gauge will rebound from the lowest in 2 1/2 months. A Labor Department report today may show initial claims for jobless benefits slid to 419,000 last week from 422,000, according to the median forecast of 49 economists in a Bloomberg survey. Crude oil climbed 57 cents to $101.31 a barrel in New York. Wheat advanced 1.1 percent and cotton jumped 0.7 percent. U.S. Department of Agriculture reports may show declines in supplies, according to the median estimates of traders and analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. Silver futures jumped 0.9 percent. Greece, Portugal The extra yield investors demand to hold Greek 10-year bonds instead of benchmark German bunds increased 17 basis points, while the similar-maturity Portuguese-German spread widened to 718 basis points, the most since at least 1997, when Bloomberg began collecting the data. The yield on the 30-year Treasury bond was little changed at 4.19 percent before the government sells $13 billion of the securities, the last of three auctions this week totaling $66 billion. The yield on the five-year Treasury note rose two basis points. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index dropped 0.5 percent. The Shanghai Composite sank the most among equity gauges in the world’s 50 biggest markets to close at the lowest level since January on speculation the central bank will keep tightening monetary policy. South Korea’s Kospi Index retreated 0.6 percent before tomorrow’s central bank rate decision. PZU SA, Poland’s biggest insurer, led a 0.8 percent slump in the country’s benchmark WIG20 Index as the government began selling a stake of as much as 10 percent. --With assistance from Claudia Carpenter, Michael Patterson, Andrew Rummer and Dan Tilles in London. Editors: Stephen Kirkland, Justin Carrigan CN CN CN CN CN To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Kirkland in London at skirkland@bloomberg.net. To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stuart Wallace at swallace@bloomberg.net

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