BLBG: U.S. Stock Futures Pare Drop; Walt Disney Climbs
U.S. stock futures were little changed, following the biggest three-day rally in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index since March 2009, as a weakening in China’s manufacturing overshadowed a rally in French and Spanish bonds.
Wells Fargo & Co. and Pfizer Inc. (PFE) dropped at least 0.2 percent to pace declines among the biggest companies. Yahoo (YHOO)! Inc. added 5.3 percent as a group including Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. is said to prepare a bid for all of the company. Walt Disney Co. (DIS), owner of the namesake theme parks, rose 0.8 percent after boosting its dividend 50 percent.
S&P 500 futures expiring in December dropped 0.1 percent to 1,245.30 at 7:53 a.m. New York time. The benchmark gauge rallied 7.6 percent over the previous three days. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures climbed 4 points, or less than 0.1 percent, to 12,038 today. The index yesterday posted the biggest gain since 2009.
“The market may be too occupied with action in Europe, but China concerns are not too far back in everyone’s mind,” said Manish Singh, the London-based head of investment at Crossbridge Capital, which has more than $2 billion under management. “With the European situation still unresolved, if Chinese growth worsens, it adds to the woe.”
The S&P 500 rose 4.3 percent yesterday as six central banks took action on Europe’s debt crisis by making it cheaper for lenders to borrow in dollars and after China lowered banks’ reserve requirements. It was the ninth time since the beginning of 2010 that the index rallied more than 3 percent in one day, according to data compiled by Birinyi Associates Inc. Following similar gains, the measure has fallen six out of eight previous instances when the market opened, the data showed.
Economic Data
A purchasing managers’ index compiled by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing slid to 49 in November, lower than all but two of 18 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey. Spanish and French bonds rallied after the governments sold debt. Manufacturing in the U.S. probably grew in November at the fastest pace in five months, economists said before a report today.
Some of the biggest companies retreated after yesterday’s rally. Wells Fargo lost 0.2 percent to $25.80. Pfizer declined 0.3 percent to $20.
Yahoo rallied 5.3 percent to $16.55. Alibaba Group and Softbank Corp. (9984) are in advanced talks with Blackstone Group LP (BX) and Bain Capital LLC about making a bid for all of Yahoo, said three people with knowledge of the matter. A bid may value Yahoo at more than $20 a share because of tax savings tied to the Internet company’s stakes in Alibaba and Yahoo Japan, said two of the people, who declined to be identified.
Disney gained 0.8 percent to $36.14. The new 60-cent annual dividend, up from 40 cents, will be paid on Jan. 18 to shareholders of record as of Dec. 16, the Burbank, California- based company said yesterday in a statement.
To contact the reporter on this story: Rita Nazareth in Sao Paulo at rnazareth@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Nick Baker at nbaker7@bloomberg.net