WELLINGTON, Feb 5 (Reuters) -
EQUITIES
NEW YORK - The S&P 500 and Nasdaq were little changed while the Dow was up 0.26 percent in choppy trading on Thursday as oil prices pared earlier gains and investors awaited the monthly jobs report on Friday.
At 12:56 p.m. ET, the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI was up 42.94 points, or 0.26 percent, at 16,379.6, the S&P 500 .SPX was up 0.6 points, or 0.03 percent, at 1,913.13 and the Nasdaq Composite index .IXIC was down 4.85 points, or 0.11 percent, at 4,499.39.
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LONDON - Britain's top share index rallied on Thursday, rebounding from the previous session's falls after a drop in the dollar boosted commodity prices and gave a lift to mining and oil shares.
Britain's FTSE 100 was up 1.1 percent at 5,898.76 points at its close, snapping a three-day losing streak that had seen the index shed 4 percent.
For a full report, double click on .L
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TOKYO - Japan's Nikkei share average fell to a one-week low on Thursday as a stronger yen hurt market sentiment, while bellwether companies such as Panasonic Corp 6752.T and Hitachi Ltd 6501.T dived after cutting earnings forecasts. The Nikkei .N225 dropped 0.9 percent to 17,044.99, the lowest closing price since Jan. 28.
The broader Topix .TOPX dropped 1.2 percent to 1,388.81 and the JPX-Nikkei Index 400 .JPXNK400 shed 1.2 percent to 12,532.60.
For a full report, double click on .T
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FOREIGN EXCHANGE
NEW YORK - The U.S. dollar extended its plunge against major currencies on Thursday as traders sharply unwound bullish bets against the greenback on continued skepticism that the Federal Reserve would be able to hike interest rates this year.
The euro hit its highest level in 15 weeks of $1.12390 against the dollar, while the dollar fell to a two-week low against the yen of 116.655 yen.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, hit a roughly 15-week low of 96.259 .DXY .
Against the Swiss franc, the dollar dropped to a 3-1/2-week low of 0.99250 franc CHF=EBS .
For a full report, double click on USD/
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TREASURIES
NEW YORK - U.S. Treasuries were steady on Thursday as data showed weaker U.S. growth, with investors focused on an employment report on Friday for further signs about economic momentum.
Benchmark 10-year notes US10YT=RR were last down 1/32 in price to yield 1.88 percent, little changed on the day.
For a full report, double click on US/
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COMMODITIES
GOLD
NEW YORK - Gold extended its rally on Thursday, building on the previous day's gains to strike a three-month high as global economic and financial headwinds present obstacles to a U.S. interest rate rise in the near term.
Spot gold XAU= rose more than 1 percent at one point to touch $1,156.60 an ounce, its highest since Oct. 29, adding to Wednesday's 1.2 percent rise.
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BASE METALS
LONDON - Zinc climbed to its highest in more than three months on Thursday on concerns about potential shortages, while a slide in the dollar on worries about the U.S. economy boosted copper and the wider industrial metals market.
Three-month benchmark zinc on the London Metal Exchange CMZN3 surged to a peak of $1,728 a tonne, the highest since Oct. 29, before paring gains to close at $1,715, a rise of 1.1 percent. LME copper CMCU3 ended 1.1 percent firmer at $4,687 a tonne, building on the previous session's 1.9 percent gain. The contract touched an intra-day high of $4,720, its highest since Jan. 4.
For a full report, double click on MET/L
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OIL
NEW YORK - Oil prices were volatile on Thursday, reversing earlier gains as scepticism that cash-strapped OPEC member Venezuela's effort to lobby crude producers for output cuts would succeed offset a weakening dollar.
Brent LCOc1 futures were down 25 cents, or 0.7 percent, at $34.79 a barrel, after trading between $34.15 and $35.84.
U.S. crude CLc1 was down a penny at $32.27 per barrel after swinging between $31.68 and $33.60.
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