By Sarah Jones Oct. 8 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures rallied after Alcoa Inc. kicked off the third-quarter reporting season with earnings that beat analysts’ estimates. Alcoa, the largest U.S. aluminum producer, jumped more than 7 percent in German trading. PepsiCo Inc. also advanced as the second-biggest soda maker reported better-than-forecast earnings. Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and Barrick Gold Corp. climbed as gold traded at a record for a third day. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index expiring in December climbed 0.9 percent to 1,063.4 at 12:13 p.m. in London, indicating the gauge may rise for a fourth day, the longest stretch of gains in a month. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 0.8 percent to 9,752 and Nasdaq-100 Index futures increased 0.7 percent to 1,720.5. “It’s nice to see that Alcoa beat expectations,” said Nick Skiming, who helps oversee about $2 billion at Ashburton Ltd. in Jersey, the Channel Islands. “They have put into practice cost-cutting measures and comments from their chief executive officer have been improving. Whilst incrementally positive, we still need to see if end demand is coming through.” U.S. stocks yesterday extended a 7-month rally as analysts upgraded Bank of America Corp. and Wells Fargo & Co. announced plans to boost credit-card rates. S&P 500 companies will report a ninth straight quarter of declining profits, the longest streak since the Great Depression, before returning to growth in the final three months of the year, analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg show. Interest Rates Even so, the S&P 500 has rebounded 56 percent from a 12- year low in March amid signs the worst of a global recession is over. The rally drove its valuation to more than 20 times reported operating income for its companies last month, the most since 2004. The Bank of England today left its key rate unchanged at a record low of 0.5 percent, while the European Central Bank is later expected to leave its key rate unchanged, one year after the Federal Reserve and five other central banks lowered interest rates in an unprecedented coordinated effort to help ease the effects of the financial crisis. Alcoa, the first company in the Dow average to report earnings, jumped 7.3 percent to $15.24 in Germany. The New York- based company’s profit excluding certain items was 4 cents a share. That beat the average analyst estimate for a 9 cent loss, as metal prices climbed and the company cut jobs. PepsiCo added 0.4 percent to $61.42. The company today reported third-quarter adjusted profit of $1.08 a share, beating the average analyst estimate of $1.03 a share. Freeport, the world’s largest publicly traded copper producer, increased 2.5 percent to $74.63 in Germany, while Barrick increased 1.8 percent to $39.99. Gold climbed to a record and copper rose in London as the dollar’s slump prompted investors to buy commodities as a hedge against potential inflation.

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