U.S. stock-index futures were little changed, following yesterday’s equity rally, as a Chinese manufacturing gauge climbed to a five-month high and investors awaited data on jobless claims and home sales in the world’s largest economy. Williams-Sonoma Inc. added 5.6 percent in early New York trading after boosting its earnings forecast for the year. NetApp Inc. (NTAP) declined 1.1 percent in premarket trading after predicting quarterly profit will be lower than analysts had estimated. Keurig Green Mountain Inc. lost 0.9 percent after Roth Capital Partners LLC reduced its rating on the maker of home-brewing machines for coffee. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 50o Index (SPX) expiring in June gained less than 0.1 percent to 1,885.4 at 7:37 a.m. in New York. Dow Jones Industrial Average contracts added 8 points, less than 0.1 percent, to 16,507 today. “Things are starting to look a little tired,� Frances Hudson, a strategist at Standard Life Investments Ltd., which oversees $294 billion, said by telephone from Edinburgh. “The mixed picture in earnings gives you a sense of that, while on the macro side, the economy does seem to be improving, although at a very slow pace. It’s a better environment for active investors. You need to discriminate between companies. We’re not in an environment where a rising tide lifts all boats.� Chinese Manufacturing Global equities gained as a preliminary purchasing managers’ index in China from HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics increased to 49.7 in May, a five-month high. That exceeded the 48.3 median estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. April’s final reading was 48.1. Readings below 50 signal contraction. A report at 8:30 a.m. in Washington may show more Americans filed for jobless claims in the week ended May 17, according to economists in a Bloomberg survey. Separate data at 9:45 a.m. may show a preliminary reading for a manufacturing index increased in May from last month, while a release at 10 a.m. will probably show existing home sales rose in April from a month earlier. The S&P 500 climbed 0.8 percent yesterday, as Tiffany & Co. rallied after posting quarterly profit that beat estimates and Federal Reserve policy makers said continued stimulus doesn’t risk fueling a jump in the inflation rate. Williams-Sonoma (WSM) climbed 5.6 percent to $67.32. The seller of cookware and home furnishings raised its full-year earnings forecast to as much as $3.17 a share, after earlier predicting no more than $3.15. The San Francisco-based company also reported first-quarter profit of 48 cents a share, exceeding the 44-cent analyst projection. NetApp Falls NetApp declined 1.1 percent to $34.11. The maker of data-storage equipment forecast first-quarter earnings of no more than 58 cents a share. That fell short of analysts’ estimates calling for 62 cents. Keurig Green Mountain lost 0.9 percent to $112.72 in New York. Roth Capital lowered its rating on the Waterbury, Vermont-based company to neutral, similar to hold, from buy. Activision Blizzard Inc. dropped 0.9 percent to $20.68 in New York trading after saying that Vivendi SA is selling half of its remaining stake in the video-gamer maker in an offering valued at more than $850 million. Sears Holding Corp. (SHLD) slid 4.2 percent to $35.01. The retailer controlled by billionaire hedge-fund manager Edward Lampert posted a wider first-quarter loss amid a sales decline that’s stretched into its seventh year. Net loss in the three months through May 3 expanded to $402 million from a loss of $279 million a year earlier. Revenue fell 6.8 percent to $7.88 billion. Best Buy Co. (BBY) declined 4.1 percent to $24.31. The consumer electronics retailer said total revenue fell 3.3 percent to $9.04 billion in the quarter ended May 3. That marked the ninth straight quarterly drop and trailed analysts’ $9.22 billion average estimate. To contact the reporter on this story: Inyoung Hwang in London at ihwang7@bloomberg.net To contact the editors responsible for this story: Cecile Vannucci at cvannucci1@bloomberg.net Alan Soughley

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