May 15 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures gained after UBS AG raised its recommendation for global oil shares, lifting energy producers.
Chevron Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp. climbed in Germany as UBS said the industry is ``notably inexpensive'' and raised its crude price forecast for this year by 32 percent to $115 a barrel. General Electric Co. advanced after people familiar with the situation said it may sell or seek a partner for the unit that makes refrigerators and washers. Most European shares rose and Asian stocks rallied the most in two weeks.
Futures on the Standard & Poor's 500 Index expiring in June added 1.7, or 0.1 percent, to 1,409.5 at 12:01 p.m. in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures increased 19 to 12,898. Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained 5.75 to 2,002.25.
``One should not be underweight energy stocks because of the strong oil price,'' said Alessandra Querini, a money manager at Aletti Gestielle SGR in Milan, which oversees about $19 billion in assets. Analysts ``are basing forecasts on estimated oil prices that are lower than the current market price. I like the sector.''
Gross domestic product in the euro area increased 0.7 percent from the previous three months, when it climbed 0.4 percent, the European Union's statistics office in Luxembourg said today. The pace exceeded the 0.5 percent median of 32 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey.
Jeffrey Palma, a New York-based strategist at UBS, lifted his recommended allocation of global oil stocks to ``a modest overweight.'' The recommendation means investors should hold more of the shares than are represented in indexes.
Chevron, Exxon
Chevron, the second-largest oil company in the U.S., added 38 cents to $98.10 after the shares were raised to ``buy'' from ``neutral'' at UBS.
``The sector appears notably inexpensive,'' analysts including New York-based William A. Featherston wrote in a report to clients. ``The majors offer compelling value, particularly in view of our higher oil price forecast which we expect the investment community to gradually incorporate in forecasts over the next few months.''
Chevron trades at 10.59 times earnings and the S&P 500 Energy Index is valued at 13.4 times earnings, compared with the S&P 500's valuation of 23.52 times profit, according to Bloomberg data.
``We can't see oil falling below $100 from here and it's time investors accepted triple-digit oil and started positioning portfolios accordingly,'' said Dominic Rossi, head of international equities at Threadneedle Asset Management Ltd. in London.
General Electric
Exxon Mobil, the world's biggest oil company, gained 31 cents to $90.22 in Germany.
GE, the largest maker of appliances for new U.S. homes, rose 8 cents to $32.59 in Germany. The company hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to explore options that include a spinoff or auction of the unit, according to one of the people, who declined to be identified by name. A sale of the unit may bring as much as $8 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.
Gary Sheffer, a company spokesman, declined to comment on a possible sale.
Sina Corp. surged $5.73 to $58.88 in Germany. China's biggest Web portal posted 25 percent higher first-quarter profit than analysts estimated after luring more users with music, videos and a new database of information for buying and selling real estate.
J.C. Penney Co., the third-largest U.S. department-store chain, is scheduled to report earnings before the market opens, while Kohl's Corp. and Nordstrom Inc. will release quarterly results after the close.
Economic Reports
A Federal Reserve report today will probably show output at manufacturers, mines and utilities fell 0.3 percent after rising 0.3 percent in March, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey. The data is due at 9:15 a.m. in Washington. Separate regional Fed reports may also show the decline continued into May.
The central bank's chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, and Bank of Chicago President Charles Evans will speak at the Chicago Fed's annual conference on bank structure and competition today.
A Labor Department report may show the number of Americans filing applications for the first time gained to 370,000, which is 5,000 more than the previous week, according to the average of 34 economists polled by Bloomberg.
U.S. stocks yesterday rose for a third day after consumer prices climbed less than forecast and Freddie Mac's results bolstered speculation the worst credit-market losses are over.
