By Justin Carrigan Nov. 6 (Bloomberg) -- Commodities rose and the dollar fell on speculation the U.S. employment report will add to evidence the worst is over for the world’s biggest economy. Copper rose 1.1 percent at 10:29 a.m. in London, leading gains in industrial metals, and gold traded within 0.1 percent of a record. The dollar declined against all of the 16 most- traded currencies tracked by Bloomberg. European stocks and U.S. index futures fluctuated. U.S. employers probably cut 175,000 jobs in October, the fewest in more than a year, according to the median of 84 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey, fueling optimism the worst labor-market slump since the 1930s is bottoming and consumer spending may add to economic growth. Australia’s central bank said today the nation’s economy will expand at more than three times the pace forecast in August. “The lagging nature of unemployment means that those with a bullish view on the recovery could still be right even if payrolls were negative in the first quarter of 2010,” Jim Reid, head of fundamental strategy at Deutsche Bank AG in London, wrote today in a note to clients. “If we get too rapid a recovery in payrolls then the market would again become obsessed with exit strategies.” The MSCI World Index of 23 developed countries added 0.1 percent, while Europe’s Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index swung between gains and losses. Hannover Re, BA Hannover Re advanced 3.9 percent in Frankfurt after Germany’s second-biggest reinsurer reported third-quarter profit that beat analysts’ estimates. British Airways Plc gained 6.8 percent in London as Europe’s third-biggest carrier said traffic volumes and yields were stabilizing. Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc added 5.8 percent in London even after Britain’s biggest government-controlled bank had a third-quarter loss of 1.8 billion pounds ($3 billion) after 3.3 billion pounds of provisions for bad loans and credit- market writedowns. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 1.1 percent. Macquarie Group Ltd., Australia’s largest investment bank, and Westpac Banking Corp., the nation’s second-largest bank, both gained more than 2.5 percent in Sydney. U.S. index futures fluctuated after the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index posted a four-day, 2.9 percent advance. Equities have climbed as reports on jobless claims and worker productivity beat estimates and Warren Buffett agreed to buy Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. Exit Strategies Central banks around the world are debating how to exit measures that are helping to haul economies out of the recession after spending a total of $12 trillion, by International Monetary Fund estimates. The U.S. economy expanded at a 3.5 percent pace from July through September, the government said last week. Household purchases climbed 3.4 percent, the most in two years. The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose for a third day, adding 1 percent, led by a 2.2 percent jump in Thailand’s Bangkok SET Index. Benchmark indexes in India, Russia and Taiwan rose 0.6 percent. South Africa’s rand strengthened 0.5 percent against the dollar. “While we may see some slowing of momentum, we’re still seeing positive growth, and recent numbers have been strong,” Olivier Desbarres, a foreign-exchange strategist at Credit Suisse Group AG in Singapore, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “That provides a reasonably constructive backdrop, certainly for the emerging-markets world.” Australian Dollar The Australian dollar gained against all but one of the 16 most-traded currencies, rising 0.7 percent versus the dollar, after the Reserve Bank said in Sydney that gross domestic product will expand 1.75 percent this year and 3.25 percent in 2010. Three months ago, it forecast growth of 0.5 percent and 2.25 percent respectively. The Dollar Index, which tracks the currency against six of the U.S.’s biggest trading partners, dropped 0.2 percent. Copper for delivery in three months rose 1.1 percent to $6,603.75 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, while nickel added 2.1 percent to $18,131 a ton. Gold for immediate delivery rose as much as 0.6 percent to $1,096.38 an ounce. The metal reached a record $1,097.72 on Nov. 4. Crude oil for December delivery gained 0.8 percent to $80.22 a barrel in New York trading. To contact the reporters on this story: Justin Carrigan in London at jcarrigan@bloomberg.net.

Source