U.S. stock futures gained, indicating the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index will rise for a fourth day, as investors speculated that the euro area’s leaders will resolve the sovereign-debt crisis. Bank of America Corp. (BAC) and JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) advanced 1.1 percent and 0.9 percent, respectively, in German trading. United Technologies Corp. (UTX) climbed 1.3 percent after one of the company’s top executives said there were no plans to sell or spin off a unit. Contracts on the S&P 500 expiring in December advanced 0.5 percent to 1,188 at 10:47 a.m. in London, after earlier falling as much as 0.5 percent. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures expiring the same month increased 51 points, or 0.5 percent, to 11,225. “A slightly more positive tone came out of Europe,” James Buckley, who helps oversee $52 billion at Baring Asset Management in London, said in a telephone interview. “We’re still waiting for much more detail in terms of Greek debt and the extent of default that will be necessary and how banks will be recapitalized. We need much more detail on all this before we can really expect a more definite positive tone.” The S&P 500 climbed 1.4 percent yesterday as French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they are “convinced” Greece will remain in the euro area. The gauge of U.S. equities has lost 5.5 percent this year after plunging 18 percent between the end of April and Aug. 8. The index has since rebounded 6.2 percent. Consumer-Price Inflation A Labor Department report due at 8:30 a.m. in Washington may show that the cost of living in the U.S. rose at a slower pace in August as energy prices fell. The consumer-price index increased 0.2 percent, according to the median forecast of 84 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The so-called core gauge, which excludes volatile food and fuel prices, probably climbed 0.2 percent, economists said. Other reports today may show manufacturing contracted in the New York and Philadelphia regions this month. Figures from the Labor Department may show first-time jobless claims at a level that indicates limited improvement in the job market. Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America gained 1.1 percent to $7.13 in German trading, while JPMorgan added 0.9 percent to $33.11. Jet engine maker United Technologies increased 1.3 percent to $74.64 in German trading. The company has no plans to sell or spin off Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, the unit that builds rocket engines for civilian and military missions, according to one of the company’s top executives. To contact the reporter on this story: Cecile Vannucci in Amsterdam at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Andrew Rummer at arummer@bloomberg.net

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