European stocks rose for a fourth day and Italy’s borrowing costs fell at a debt sale. The yen halted a decline toward 100 per dollar, while U.S.-equity index futures swung between gains and losses before a report on jobless claims. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index jumped 0.5 percent at 6 a.m. in New York. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures added less than 0.1 percent. Spain’s 10-year yield was little changed at 4.64 percent after dropping to the lowest since November 2010. Japan’s currency strengthened 0.2 percent to 99.60 per dollar, Sweden’s krona advanced after an inflation report, and South Korea’s won gained after the central bank kept interest rates unchanged. Oil fell 0.2 percent and silver declined 0.7 percent. Italy’s borrowing costs dropped at an auction of 7.17 billion euros ($9.38 billion) of bonds today as monetary easing by Japan prompted investors to search for better returns. The number of American filing for jobless benefits probably declined last week, economists said before a Labor Department report today. China’s new bank loans and aggregate financing rose more than economists forecast in March, a sign demand is picking up in Asia’s biggest economy. “We’ve clearly got the equity markets underpinned by the continuation of quantitative easing in the States and the aggressive easing of monetary policy in Japan,� Bob Parker, who helps oversee $406 billion as senior adviser at Credit Suisse Asset Management in London, told Francine Lacqua on Bloomberg Television. “The next move will be some form of easing by the European Central Bank. If we do have a correction, and I use the word ’if,’ it’s going to be very minor indeed.� Ashmore Assets The Stoxx 600 completed the biggest three-day rally since January yesterday. Ashmore Group Plc (ASHM), a U.K. fund manager that invests in emerging markets, rallied 11 percent today, the most in four years, as assets under management increased. Man Group Plc, the world’s largest publicly traded hedge-fund manager, jumped 6.2 percent after regulators cut the amount of capital it must hold. Evraz Plc (EVR) plunged 9.9 percent in London trading, the largest drop since 2011, as Russia’s biggest steelmaker said it will pay no final dividend for 2012 after a deterioration in performance in the second half. The S&P 500 (SPX) climbed 1.2 percent yesterday to a record as a report showed China’s imports grew faster than economists forecast in March and investors speculated earnings will beat estimates. The gauge has more than doubled from its 12-year low in March 2009, helped by the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented bond purchases and three straight years of profit growth. Fortinet Tumbles Fortinet Inc., a provider of computer-network security, fell 18 percent in pre-market New York trading today after reporting preliminary first-quarter sales and profit that missed some analyst estimates. A Labor Department report at 8:30 a.m. in Washington may show U.S. jobless claims slipped to 360,000 last week from 385,000 the previous period, which was the reading highest since Nov. 24, according to economists in a Bloomberg survey. Italy sold 4 billion euros of a new 2016 bond at 2.29 percent, down from the 2.48 percent on similar maturity debt March 13. Investors bid 1.4 times the amount of the three- year bond offered, up from 1.28 times last month. The U.S. 10-year Treasury note yield was little changed at 1.80 percent, snapping a three-day drop. Economists are cutting their forecasts for how much yields will rise this year as the world’s largest economy shows signs of slowing. Ten-year yields will be 2.25 percent by Dec. 31, based on the average forecast among banks and securities companies surveyed by Bloomberg News from April 5 to April 9. The projection dropped from this year’s high of 2.32 percent in February, based on the monthly surveys. Treasury Auction The U.S. is scheduled to sell $13 billion of 30-year debt today in the last of this week’s three note and bond sales, which will total $66 billion. Sweden’s krona strengthened 0.5 percent to 6.3649 per dollar after a report showed consumer prices were unchanged on an annual basis in March. The yen strengthened 0.2 percent to 99.58 per dollar after official data showed Japanese investors sold foreign bonds last week. The euro was little changed at $1.3088. The New Zealand dollar touched 86 U.S. cents for the first time in 1 1/2 years after reports showed the nation’s manufacturing industry expanded last month and a gauge of home prices advanced to a record. The cost of insuring Peugeot SA debt from non-payment with credit-default swaps contracts rose nine basis points to 727, the biggest increase since March 28, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Emerging Markets The MSCI Emerging Markets Index (MXEF) rose for a third day, advancing 0.5 percent. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index of mainland companies increased 0.3 percent. New local-currency lending in March was 1.06 trillion yuan ($171 billion), more than the 900 billion yuan median estimate in a Bloomberg survey, data from the People’s Bank of China showed. Turkey’s benchmark gauge climbed 1.2 percent after Moody’s Investors Service said a peace agreement with Kurdish militants would boost investment and enhance the country’s creditworthiness. The won climbed 0.6 percent against the dollar and the Kospi index of stocks gained 0.7 percent. The Bank of Korea held the benchmark seven-day repurchase rate at 2.75 percent today. Eleven of 20 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News forecast a reduction as tensions with North Korea threaten to damp business and consumer sentiment. Oil dropped to $94.30 a barrel, the first decline this week after U.S. crude inventories climbed to a 22-year high. Silver dropped to $27.5075 an ounce. To contact the reporters on this story: Stephen Kirkland in London at skirkland@bloomberg.net; Jae Hur in Tokyo at jhur1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stuart Wallace at Swallace6@bloomberg.net;

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