European shares climbed, the euro strengthened and Italian bonds gained after Le Monde reported that the European Central Bank is preparing to buy securities of the region’s most indebted economies. Commodities advanced. The Stoxx (SXXP) Europe 600 Index gained 0.6 percent at 12:19 p.m. in London. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures added 0.5 percent. Oil advanced 0.6 percent. Italy’s 10-year bond yield fell 17 basis points to 5.87 percent. The euro climbed 0.2 percent to $1.2311. The cost of insuring European corporate debt dropped for a third day. French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel may discuss the ECB plan today by telephone, Le Monde said, without citing anyone. Data today are forecast to show the U.S. economy expanded at the slowest pace in a year and French Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici said he “trusts� ECB President Mario Draghi to do what’s needed to help Europe’s rebound. Facebook (FB) Inc. fell 12 percent in German trading after reporting slower sales growth and narrower profit margins. “It is evident that some policy action is needed,� said Michael Markovic, head of global rates research at Credit Suisse Group AG’s private bank in Zurich. “Our focus will continue to be on what comes out of the European Central Bank.� U.S. Economy U.S. gross domestic product, the value of all goods and services the nation produced, probably expanded at a 1.4 percent annual rate in the second quarter, according to the median forecast of 81 economists surveyed by Bloomberg before the Commerce Department report at 8:30 a.m. in Washington. That would be the slowest since the second quarter last year. Cie. de Saint-Gobain SA, Europe’s biggest supplier of building materials, tumbled 11 percent after cutting its full- year outlook, citing Europe’s economic crisis. Vallourec SA sank 9.1 percent as the producer of steel pipes for the oil and gas industry reported declining profit. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index is little changed for the week, after seven straight weeks of gains. Total SA, France’s largest oil producer, climbed 3.6 percent as second-quarter profit rose. Barclays (BARC) surged 6.5 percent after reporting earnings that beat analysts’ estimates on growth in retail and investment banking. European Aeronautic, Defence and Space Co. jumped 6.7 percent after saying first-half profit rose 89 percent and lifting its full-year earnings forecast. Starbucks Plunge The S&P 500 advanced 1.7 percent yesterday. Facebook shares tumbled after its first earnings report as a public company. Operating margin, excluding certain costs, was 43 percent in the second quarter, a decline from 53 percent a year earlier. Starbucks Corp., the world’s largest coffee-shop chain, plunged 9.4 percent in Germany after forecasting fourth-quarter profit that missed estimates. The Markit iTraxx Crossover Index of credit-default swaps on 50 mostly junk-rated companies declined 20 basis points to a one-week low of 644. The euro climbed for a third day against the dollar. Ten- year Treasury yields rose three basis points to 1.47 percent after falling to a record-low 1.379 percent two days ago. Ten-year German bond yields were at 1.35 percent. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index (MXEF) climbed 1.6 percent, headed for its biggest gain since June 29, and paring a weekly drop to 0.6 percent. South Korea’s Kospi index led gains among emerging- market gauges, climbing 2.6 percent, the most since January. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) of mainland companies listed in Hong Kong advanced 2 percent. Benchmark indexes added 0.4 percent in Russia and South Africa. The S&P GSCI gauge of 24 commodities advanced 0.6 percent. Soybeans rose 1.4 percent and Brent crude increased to $105.93 a barrel. Copper gained 1.4 percent to $7,572 a metric ton. To contact the reporters on this story: Claudia Carpenter in London at ccarpenter2@abloomberg.net Richard Frost in Hong Kong at rfrost4@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stuart Wallace at swallace6@bloomberg.net

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