Oct. 17 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures were little changed. General Motors Corp., the world's biggest automaker, and Citigroup Inc., the largest U.S. financial-services firm, slipped before reporting earnings today.

Biogen Idec Inc. climbed after the biotechnology company and partner Elan Corp. said there were no new cases of a neurological disease in their Tysabri studies.

Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures expiring in December slipped 0.8 to 1189.10 as of 9:25 a.m. in London. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures lost 4 at 10,298 and Nasdaq 100 Index futures increased 1.5 to 1551.5.

U.S. shares fell to their lowest in five months last week amid concern rising interest rates and higher oil prices will curb companies' earnings. Oil prices today gained the most in four days as a storm in the Caribbean is expected to strengthen.

``Everything in the food chain is affected by higher oil prices,'' said Robert Sellar, who oversees $2 billion as head of North American stocks at Aberdeen Asset Management in London. ``Margins could get squeezed. We're expecting a bit of disappointment'' in corporate earnings.

GM and Citigroup are among at least 11 companies in the S&P 500 that are scheduled to report quarterly earnings. Other companies include Wachovia Corp., Mattel Inc. and International Business Machines Corp.

GM decreased 9 cents to $27.89 in Germany. The carmaker probably will report a fourth straight quarterly loss today. The company is expected to release earnings before the stock market opens.

Citigroup Falls

Citigroup dropped 18 cents to $44.86. The company may post its first earnings drop in more than a year after credit-card defaults climbed and rising short-term interest rates made consumer lending less profitable.

Third-quarter net income probably fell 6 percent to $4.99 billion, or 99 cents a share, based on the average estimates of analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. A record quarterly profit at the New York-based company's investment-banking unit may raise earnings above estimates when Citigroup reports Oct. 17, investors said. Revenue may be little changed at $20.5 billion.

Wachovia, the No. 4 U.S. bank, and Mattel, the world's largest toymaker, are also expected to report earnings before the stock market opens.

IBM, the world's largest maker of computer servers, and Novellus Systems Inc., which makes machines used in semiconductor manufacturing, are scheduled to report earnings after the market closes. IBM shares dropped 29 cents to $82.06 in Germany, while Novellus didn't trade in Europe.

Biogen Rises

Biogen gained $1.71 to $39.73 in Germany. The company and Elan said they sent safety data for the Tysabri multiple sclerosis drug to European Union regulators. The findings showed no new cases of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a rare neurological disease.

Tysabri was withdrawn from the market earlier this year after three patients developed PML.

MCI Inc. may decrease. The No. 2 long-distance telephone company was cut to ``neutral'' from ``overweight'' at J.P. Morgan, Chase & Co. The shares didn't trade in Europe.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York's regional manufacturing index probably increased to 19 from 17 in September, according to the median economist forecast in a Bloomberg News survey. Readings above zero suggest expansion. The report is due at 8:30 a.m. in Washington.

Stocks advanced on Oct. 14 as a decline in oil prices outweighed investors' concerns about rates. The S&P 500 added 0.8 percent to 1186.57. The Dow climbed 0.7 percent to 10,287.34. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.9 percent to 2064.83.

Crude for November delivery climbed as much as 2.3 percent to $64.08 on the New York Mercantile Exchange today after gaining 1.3 percent in the past five trading sessions.

To contact the reporter on this story: Adria Cimino in Paris at acimino1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: October 17, 2005 04:40 EDT