Government bonds rose, driving the 30-year German yield below 3 percent for the first time, on speculation economic growth is too anemic to fuel inflation. U.S. index futures fluctuated and European stocks pared losses. The yield on the 30-year bund slid as low as 2.98 percent, and the 10-year U.S. Treasury yield dropped to 2.62 percent, near the lowest in 17 months. The yen strengthened against all but two of its 16 most-traded peers. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index declined 0.1 percent at 10:40 a.m. in London, after losing as much as 0.9 percent. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures added less than 0.1 percent. Oil fell 0.6 percent to $75.29 a barrel. The Federal Reserve may have to buy more assets if inflation keeps slowing, James Bullard, president of the Fed Bank of St. Louis, told the Wall Street Journal yesterday. The central bank announced its buying plans on Aug. 10, saying it would make the purchases using funds from principal payments of its holdings of mortgage-backed debt. “There is still concern on the strength of the recovery, and the risk is that the Fed will expand its balance sheet with further purchases,” said Orlando Green, assistant director of capital-markets strategy at Credit Agricole Corporate & Investment Bank in London. The yen gained 0.2 percent to 109.99 per euro, while the euro slipped 0.1 percent to $1.2872. The Swiss franc strengthened 0.3 percent to 1.3407 per euro and appreciated 0.2 percent against the dollar to 1.0417. European stocks fell for the first time in five days, with three stocks declining for every two that rose. Vestas Wind Systems A/S tumbled 22 percent after the world’s biggest wind- turbine maker lowered its sales forecast. BHP, Maersk BHP Billiton Ltd. led mining shares lower after making a $40 billion hostile bid for Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. Credit-default swaps insuring BHP’s debt rose 19.5 basis points to 100.5, according to data provider CMA. A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S, owner of the world’s largest container-shipping line, fell 2.7 percent after saying freight rates will be lower in the fourth quarter. The S&P 500 rose 1.2 percent yesterday, its biggest gain in more than two weeks. Out of the 445 companies in the benchmark index to have reported second-quarter earnings since July 12, 75 percent have topped analysts’ earnings estimates, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Deere & Co. and Target Corp. are among companies scheduled to announce results before the start of trading in New York today. Copper for delivery in three months fell 0.3 percent to $7,359 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, declining for the first time in three days. Aluminum, nickel, tin and zinc also dropped. Gold for immediate delivery sank 0.2 percent to $1,222.73 an ounce. To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Kirkland in London at skirkland@bloomberg.net

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