March 23 (Bloomberg) — U.S. stock-index futures climbed as investors awaited a report that may show new home sales increased in February.
Jabil Circuit Inc. soared 10 percent after forecasting that earnings per share will exceed analysts’ projections. Adobe Systems Inc. slid after predicting fiscal second-quarter net income that fell short of analysts’ estimates as Japan’s earthquake and tsunami cut sales.
Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index expiring in June increased 0.3 percent to 1,292.3 at 10:30 a.m. in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures advanced 0.2 percent to 11,984 today, while Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained 0.1 percent to 2,259.25.
“The market’s struggling to find a clear direction,” said Radu Margoses, senior sales trader at Newedge Group in Zurich. “The Nasdaq contract is lagging as supply concerns from Japan continue and across the board the start of the earnings pre- announcement season will weigh on people’s minds.”
The S&P 500 fell yesterday for the first time in four days as oil rose and concern grew that Europe will fail to find an immediate solution to its debt crisis. Crude traded near its highest price in two weeks today as the U.S., the U.K. and France prepared to attack Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi’s ground forces, raising concern that exports from the nation will remain disrupted for some time.
In the U.S., sales of new homes probably climbed 2.1 percent to a 290,000 annual pace last month. Even so, the increase will fail to make up for the 13 percent slump the previous month, adding to evidence that the industry is floundering, economists said before a U.S. Commerce Department report due at 10 a.m. in Washington today. Even with February’s gain, sales will likely remain close to the record-low 274,000 pace reached in August.
Japan’s Nuclear Plant
Japan’s government said the damage from the March 11 earthquake and tsunami may be as much as 25 trillion yen ($309 billion) as radiation levels at the Fukushima nuclear plant hampered workers’ efforts to repair four damaged reactors and Tokyo authorities said parents shouldn’t use tap water to mix baby formula after finding traces of iodine.
European Union leaders are discussing ways to work out a solution to the region’s credit woes in time for their March 24-25 summit. Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates will today face a vote in the national parliament against his deficit- cutting plan which threatens to push the country toward early elections and a possible EU bailout.
Portuguese lawmakers will discuss the government’s so- called stability and growth program of austerity measures at 3 p.m. in Lisbon. The opposition Social Democratic and Communist parties both pledged yesterday to table resolutions against the plan.
Jabil Circuit Rallies
Jabil Circuit surged 10 percent to $20.86 in after-hours trading in New York yesterday as the company forecast fiscal third-quarter earnings per share of as much as 59 cents, beating the average estimate of 53 cents. Jabil also predicted third- quarter revenue of at least $4.1 billion, exceeding the average estimate of $4.03 billion.
Pulte Group Inc., the homes and mortgages seller, advanced 3.5 percent to $7.39 in early New York trading after Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised the shares to “buy” from “neutral.”
Adobe fell 0.4 percent to $32.74 in German trading. The largest maker of graphic-design programs forecast fiscal second- quarter profit of 47 to 54 cents a share, compared with the 56- cent average of analysts’ projections compiled by Bloomberg.
SunPower Corp., the second-largest U.S. solar module manufacturer, dropped 0.6 percent to $15.62 in German trading. The company plans to build a 5-megawatt solar power facility on Oahu to sell power to utility Hawaiian Electric Co.
–Editors: Will Hadfield, Andrew Rummer
From www.sfgate.com
