Early Bidding Focuses on Job Market

(Reuters) - Harry Robertson's outlook for the day ahead in U.S. and global markets

Jerome Powell wants the numbers, Jerome Powell will get them.

The Fed matron continued to play a familiar tune on Wednesday." In his keynote address at Stanford University, he said, "Given the strength of the economy and the progress of inflation so far, we have time to let the upcoming data guide our policy decisions.

On Thursday, Powell and his colleagues will welcome new data on the number of people applying for unemployment benefits each week. Economists put the figure at 214,000, up slightly from the previous week but in line with the average for the past six months - and out of step with the labor market's decline.

Important data will be released on Friday: March's non-job creation data could cause market turbulence. Analysts polled by Reuters believe that 200,000 new jobs were created in March, down from 275,000 in February. But recent U.S. data have tended to be hotter than expected.

But Wednesday did show signs of a possible crack in the U.S. economy. The Institute for Supply Management released much weaker-than-expected data on the service sector, with one measure of price growth hitting a four-year low.

The dollar weakened after data from the American Society of Supply Managers weakened the greenback, which ended the Pan down 0.5%, as much as the 10-year Treasury yield remained near its highest point since November.

In the FX market, volatility has declined sharply and the focus remains on whether Japan will support the Yen, which is currently near a 34-year low.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose slightly Wednesday, but remained about 1% below last week's record high as the second quarter got off to a shaky start. Futures will open slightly higher.

European stocks rose slightly on Thursday, while oil traded at a five-month high.

As the European economy lags behind the U.S., investors' rate cut expectations finally began to diverge. At present, traders believe that the Fed to December rate cuts less than 70 basis points, but the European Central Bank is expected to cut interest rates nearly 90 basis points.

Wednesday's data showed that the eurozone's inflation rate fell to 2.4% in March, lower than expected, but very close to the ECB's target of 2%. Thursday's data showed that Switzerland's inflation rate was only 1%.

US consumer price inflation data for March will be released next week, with February's inflation rate at 3.2%.

Five Fed officials, including Patrick Harker of Philadelphia and Loretta Mester of Cleveland, are scheduled to speak on Thursday, after Atlanta's Raphael Bostic said on Wednesday that a rate cut might not come until the fourth quarter.

Major developments later on Thursday will provide more曏 for the US market:

* U.S. Weekly Initial Jobless Claims Data

* :: U.S. trade balance data

* :: Minutes of the ECB meeting on March 7

* :: Fed speakers: Harkin, Barkin, Goolsbee, Kashkari, Meister

(Reporting by Harry Robertson; Editing by resonance Stina Finch)