Nov. 1 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks dropped in Europe, led by technology shares after Dell Inc.'s third-quarter sales missed the company's forecast. Intel Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Microsoft Corp. fell.

``The Dell results show that fears about weakening consumer demand in the U.S. are coming true,'' said Michiel Plakman, a fund manager focusing on technology stocks at Robeco Group in Rotterdam, which manages $12 billion.

Nineteen of the 27 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average that traded in Europe fell. Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures expiring in December lost 1.1 to 1208.7 as of 12:38 p.m. in London. The S&P 500 yesterday rose for a second day in U.S. trading. Nasdaq-100 Index futures slid 5.5 to 1581. Dow Index futures added 29 to 10,439.

Procter & Gamble Co., the largest U.S. household goods maker, and Viacom Inc., the No. 3 media company, are among more than two dozen S&P 500 companies releasing results today. Colgate-Palmolive Co. and Emerson Electric Co. also report earnings.

The Federal Reserve may raise its benchmark interest rate for the 12th straight time to 4 percent at a meeting today, according to 88 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

U.S. consumer spending dropped for a second month in September when adjusted for inflation, the first back-to-back decline in 15 years, according to a government report yesterday.

Dell shares fell $1.56 to $30.32 in Germany. The world's biggest personal-computer maker said after the market closed yesterday that third-quarter sales totaled $13.9 billion, trailing the $14.1 billion to $14.5 billion the company had predicted, as demand from U.S. consumers and U.K. businesses fell short of expectations.

Tech Stocks

``Technology stocks will get hit today,'' said Alex Ingham, who helps manage $7 billion in U.S. stocks at Morley Fund Management in London.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts Bill Shope and Elizabeth Borbolla cut the estimate for Dell's 2006 earnings per share 1.9 percent to $1.57.

``Any shortfall is a disappointment given Dell's typically impressive execution,'' the analysts wrote in a note to clients. ``PC growth will decelerate as we enter 2006.''

Intel, the world's largest maker of computer chips, slipped 26 cents to $23.24 in Germany. Microsoft, the biggest software company, declined 15 cents to $25.55, and Hewlett-Packard, the No. 2 personal-computer company, slid 4 cents to $28.

P&G said first-quarter profit rose 4.5 percent to 77 cents a share, compared with the average analyst estimate of 76 cents in a Thomson Financial survey. The shares fell 3 cents to $55.96 in trading before the report.

Viacom, Colgate, Emerson

Viacom reported third-quarter profit was 45 cents a share, compared with a loss of 28 cents a year earlier. Profit was forecast at 45 cents in a Thomson survey. The shares dropped 26 cents to $30.71 in trading before the report.

Colgate-Palmolive, the world's largest toothpaste maker, reported profit of 67 cents a share in third quarter, matching a Thomson estimate. The stock fell 20 cents to $52.76 before the release.

Emerson, the biggest maker of telecommunication power supplies, may say that fourth-quarter profit rose to 99 cents per share from 84 cents, according to Thomson. The shares didn't trade in Europe.

Computer Sciences, J&J

Shares in Computer Sciences Corp., the No. 5 U.S. computer- services company, rose $4 to $55.25 in Germany. Lockheed Martin Corp. and three private-equity companies are discussing a purchase price for Computer Sciences of as much as $65 a share, after the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Lockheed Martin shares didn't trade in Europe.

A Computer Sciences spokesman declined to comment, the Journal said.

Johnson & Johnson, the maker of thousands of products ranging from antibiotics and surgical implants to Band-Aids, declined 18 cents to $62.44 in Germany.

J&J's proposed acquisition of Guidant Corp., the second- biggest maker of implantable defibrillators, will probably be approved by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission as early as today, the New York Times reported, citing executives involved in the transaction. Guidant shares didn't trade in Europe.

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc., the No. 3 U.S. video- game maker, dropped $1.88 to $18.77 in Germany. The company forecast sales of $1.18 billion to $1.19 billion for the fiscal year, down from its $1.27 billion forecast in September. Take-Two lowered its estimate partly because of an unexpected delay in releasing the latest edition of ``Grand Theft Auto'' in some parts of Europe.

Higher Rates

The Fed will lift the overnight bank lending rate a quarter point to 4 percent, according to a Bloomberg survey. The announcement is expected at 2:15 p.m. in Washington.

Among economic reports today, U.S. construction spending probably rose 0.5 percent in September, a Commerce Department report is expected to show. The report is scheduled to be released at 10 a.m. in Washington.

U.S. manufacturing probably expanded in October at the second-fastest pace this year, the Institute for Supply Management's factory index may show. The report is due at 10 a.m.

Personal spending adjusted for inflation, which strips away the rise in energy prices, fell 0.4 percent after falling 1 percent in August, the Commerce Department said yesterday.

The S&P 500 climbed 0.7 percent to 1207.01 yesterday in the U.S. The Dow average gained 0.4 percent to 10,440.07, and the Nasdaq Composite Index added 1.5 percent to 2120.30.

To contact the reporter on this story: Martin Boer in Amsterdam at mboer1@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 1, 2005 07:45 EST