U.S. stock-index futures fluctuated as China increased its interest rates, offsetting speculation that economic growth will continue to spur share prices. Exide Technologies rallied 15 percent in early New York trading as the producer of lead-acid batteries reported third- quarter sales that topped the average analyst estimate. Principal Financial Group Inc. slid 2 percent as the life insurer posted fourth-quarter operating earnings that missed analysts’ projections. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index expiring in March dropped 0.1 percent to 1,314.5 as of 7:42 a.m. in New York. The benchmark S&P 500 has climbed for the last three days. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slid less than 0.1 percent to 12,106 today, and Nasdaq-100 Index futures lost 0.1 percent to 2,342.25. “The private sector is the fuel for the future,” said ABN Amro Private Banking’s Chief Investment Officer Didier Duret, who manages about $200 billion, in a phone interview. “We are seeing a re-acceleration of growth and a broadening of growth momentum. We maintain a rather positive view on equities, though in some areas there are valuation concerns.” Futures erased gains after China raised interest rates for the third time since mid-October. The People’s Bank of China increased the one-year deposit rate and the one-year lending rate by 25 basis points, effective tomorrow, according to a statement on the central bank’s website. The gain in stocks last week pushed the Dow to its first close above 12,000 since June 2008 as earnings, expanding U.S. manufacturing and a decrease in the unemployment rate outweighed street protests in Egypt. Reported Earnings Almost three-quarters of the companies in the S&P 500 that have reported quarterly results since Jan. 10 have topped analysts’ projections for per-share profit, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “When you get a tick up in the economy it passes through into earnings,” Jonathan Golub, chief U.S. market strategist at UBS AG said in a Bloomberg Radio interview with Tom Keene. “When you get a beat on the incoming economic data, investors tend to underestimate the impact on corporate profits. This is going to be more than anything else a cyclical story.” The rally has pushed the S&P 500 to almost 16 times the reported earnings of its companies, close to the highest level since June last year. Exide, Principal Financial Exide Technologies surged 15 percent to $12.05 in early New York trading. The producer of lead-acid batteries reported third-quarter sales of $800.3 million, exceeding the average analyst estimate, and forecast fiscal fourth-quarter earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization will exceed results from a year earlier. Principal Financial slid 2 percent to $33.02 in German trading. The Des Moines, Iowa-based life insurer posted fourth- quarter operating earnings of 66 cents per share, missing the average analyst estimate of 68 cents. Veeco Instruments Inc. declined 2.5 percent to $44 in early New York trading as the maker of data storage and gear for chipmakers forecast first-quarter earnings of no more than $1.39 a share, falling short of the $1.40 average analyst projection, according to a survey by Bloomberg. To contact the reporter on this story: Adam Haigh in London at ahaigh1@bloomberg.net. To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Merritt at dmerritt1@bloomberg.net.

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