European stocks (SXXP) rose for the first time in three days and commodities gained before a U.S. jobs report that may show hiring increased. German bonds declined, the Hungarian forint rallied and South Korea’s won weakened. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index (SXXP) added 0.3 percent at 6:30 a.m. in New York as gains in telecommunication and utility stocks offset four days of losses in UniCredit SpA that pulled Italy’s biggest bank down 38 percent this week. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures slipped less than 0.1 percent after advancing 0.2 percent. The German 10-year bond yield rose two basis points. The forint appreciated 0.5 percent against the euro. Oil climbed 0.4 percent and aluminum advanced 0.4 percent. Hiring in the U.S. probably accelerated in December for a second month, economists said before a Labor Department report today. Hungary pledged to discuss conditions for an International Monetary Fund loan after the forint slumped to a record low versus the euro and a government debt sale fell short of target. “There is a recovery� in the U.S., Marino Valensise, who oversees 51 billion euros ($65 billion) as chief investment officer at Baring Asset Management Ltd. in London, said Bloomberg Television interview with Mark Barton. “The U.S. is doing quite well. There are very good signs coming from the private sector. Unemployment may be going lower from here.� The Stoxx 600 (SXXP)’s increase extended the gauge’s third straight week of gains to 1.5 percent. Vodafone Group Plc rallied 1.9 percent as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. upgraded the mobile operator to “buy� from “neutral.� UniCredit tumbled 12 percent, extending a 19-year low, after announcing a rights offer at a 43 discount two days ago. Jobs Report Markets are closed today in Sweden, Finland, Austria, Greece and Poland for the Epiphany holiday. The S&P 500 has risen 1.9 percent this week. The Labor Department’s jobs report for December will probably show hiring by U.S. employers accelerated for a second month, economists said. Payrolls climbed by 155,000 workers after rising 120,000 the previous month, according to the median forecast of 84 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The unemployment rate rose after dropping in November to the lowest level in more than two years, the report may also show. The yield on Spain’s 10-year bond rose five basis points, and Italy’s 10-year yield also climbed five basis points. The cost of insuring European bank debt fell for the first time in three days with the Markit iTraxx Financial Index of credit- default swaps linked to 25 banks and insurers dropping 4.5 basis points to 285.5. Euro Weakens The euro was little changed at $1.2787. The euro headed for its fifth weekly drop versus the dollar, the longest run of declines since February 2010. Europe’s currency remains “very strong� and a further decline would help exports, Bank of France Governor Christian Noyer said in an interview today with Europe 1 radio in Paris. “The euro remains a highly rated currency.� The Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the U.S. currency against six trading partners, slipped less than 0.1 percent. Sweden’s krona strengthened against all 16 of its most-traded peers tracked by Bloomberg, with the Norwegian krone rising versus all but its Swedish counterpart. South Korea Probe The MSCI Emerging Markets Index (MXEF) dropped 0.5 percent, cutting this week’s gain to 1.3 percent. South Korea’s Kospi Index declined 1.1 percent and the won weakened against all 16 major counterparts as financial regulators said they were investigating the spreading of rumors about an explosion in North Korea. The nation’s stock exchange said it will probe whether there were any “unusual� trades made to profit from sudden market moves. Hungary’s BUX Index of stocks jumped 0.9 percent as Prime Minister Viktor Orban met central bank President Andras Simor amid a dispute about the bank’s independence which threatened a bailout for the country. The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.7 percent, snapping a two-day, 2.3 percent drop, on speculation the central bank will cut banks’ reserve-requirement ratios to boost lending to small companies hurt by a cash crunch. Oil in New York climbed to $102.20 a barrel. Aluminum gained to $2,044 a metric ton after Alcoa Inc., the biggest U.S. producer of the metal, said it will close 12 percent of its global capacity. The S&P GSCI index of 24 commodities climbed 0.3 percent. To contact the reporters on this story: Stephen Kirkland in London at skirkland@bloomberg.net; Lynn Thomasson in Hong Kong at lthomasson@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Gilbert at magilbert@bloomberg.net

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