Jan. 28 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures advanced. Electronics makers Flextronics International Ltd. and Broadcom Corp. rose in Europe, as did software maker InfoSpace Inc., which said first-quarter sales will beat analysts' estimates.

Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures expiring in March rose 2 to 1144.6 as of 11:47 a.m. in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures added 21 to 10,609 and Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained 5 to 1525.

The S&P 500, Dow and Nasdaq Composite Index have added more than 10 percent in three months as investors bet economic growth would boost profits. Further evidence of companies' earnings performance will come when Altria Group Inc. and Procter & Gamble Co. release earnings today. Economic reports on demand for so- called durable goods and new homes are also due.

``The economy will keep underpinning stock gains for some time as it helps demand,'' said Xavier Feu, who helps manage the equivalent of $1.9 billion at CEP Gestora SA in Barcelona, Spain. ``I am buying more equities.'' He declined to say which stocks he's adding to his portfolio.

U.S. stocks dropped yesterday after a smaller-than-expected gain in consumer confidence and sales and profit forecasts from Texas Instruments Inc. and Novellus Systems Inc. disappointed investors. Later today, the Federal Reserve comments on the state of the economy and might indicate when interest rates may rise.

``I expect short-term declines in the market because some shares have climbed too fast,'' Feu said.

Electronics Makers Gain

Flextronics rose $1.33 to $18.40 in Germany. The maker of electronics for other companies said profit excluding some costs will be 9 cents to 11 cents a share this quarter. The average estimate of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial is 8 cents.

Broadcom, a maker of chips for consumer electronics and computer networks, climbed $2.86 to $43.46 in Germany after reporting its first quarterly profit in three years. Fourth- quarter net income was $6.08 million, compared with a $1.76 billion net loss a year earlier, Broadcom said yesterday. Revenue rose 62 percent.

InfoSpace jumped $4.78, or 19 percent, to $29.59. The maker of software for wireless devices and Internet searches said yesterday that first-quarter sales will be as much as $47 million. That's more than the $36.8 million average analyst estimate in a Thomson survey.

Video Games Decline

Time Warner Inc., the world's largest media company, reported a profit of $638 million in the fourth quarter. It had a loss a year earlier, when it wrote down the value of acquired assets. The shares slipped 9 cents to $18.72 in Germany.

Tribune Co., publisher of the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune, said fourth-quarter profit rose 75 percent to $338.4 million, or $1 a share, as sales increased and it booked a gain. The stock didn't trade in Germany.

Electronic Arts Inc., the largest U.S. video-games maker, fell $2.76 to $45.77 in Germany. Profit in the fourth quarter ending March 31 will be 17 cents to 20 cents a share, it said yesterday after the close of U.S. trading. Analysts on average expected 25 cents, according to Thomson Financial. Sales will rise to $550 million, compared with a $570.2 million estimate.

Atari Inc., a maker of video games including ``Enter the Matrix,'' shed 74 cents to $3.53 in Germany. Fiscal third-quarter net income was about $20.5 million to $22.5 million rather than the $28 million to $36 million it projected, the company said after U.S. markets closed.

Sony Corp., the world's second-largest maker of consumer electronics, said today third-quarter net income fell 26 percent, in part because revenue from its PlayStation 2 games console shrank.

Amazon, Cosine Fall

Amazon.com Inc. lost $2.24 to $53.50 in Germany. Fourth- quarter net income increased to 17 cents a share from 1 cent a year earlier. Earnings excluding certain costs matched analysts estimates after beating them each quarter for the past two years.

Cosine Communications Inc. fell 52 cents to $9.81. The maker of equipment used to protect corporate telecommunications networks from hackers said it is delaying its fourth-quarter and 2003 results until an audit is completed. It expects to release the results by Feb. 17.

The Federal Reserve will comment today on the state of the U.S. economy and may give investors signals of how soon interest rates in the world's largest economy may rise. The report is due at 2:15 p.m. Washington time.

None of the 86 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News forecast an increase in the benchmark overnight bank lending rate from the current 1 percent, a 45-year low, at today's meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee.

Among economic reports scheduled for today, the Commerce Department may say at 10 a.m. in Washington that sales of new houses increased 1.7 percent in December from the previous month, completing a record year as mortgage rates held close to a 45- year low, according to a survey of economists.

The department may also report factory orders for goods made to last at least three years rose 2 percent in December, led by computer equipment, appliances and machinery. The report is due at 8:30 a.m. in Washington.

Last Updated: January 28, 2004 06:49 EST