* Asian stocks firm on signs U.S. economy stabilising
* Euro slips as investors worry over Greek debt
* Markets wait for U.S. non-farm payrolls data due 1330 GMT
* Gold steady, oil futures firm
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By Nick Macfie
SINGAPORE, March 5 (Reuters) - Asian shares surged on
Friday after encouraging retail sales and jobs data from the
United States suggested Asia's biggest export market was
stabilising, while the euro fell on worries about heavily
indebted Greece.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei average <> was up 2.07
percent at 10,355.63 at 0230 GMT, while the broader Topix
<> gained 1.53 percent to 911.34.
The MSCI index of Asian shares outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was up 0.77 percent at 405.86.
Also boosting share sentiment in Tokyo, the Nikkei
newspaper said that the Bank of Japan was examining a further
easing of its already ultra-loose monetary policy and may make
a decision on such a move as early as this month.
[]
"In addition to a solid performance from the U.S. stocks,
investors are welcoming a halt in the yen's advance against the
dollar after a media report that the BOJ is considering
additional easing measures," said Mitsuo Shimizu, deputy
general manager at Cosmo Securities.
The dollar index <.DXY> rose to 80.58, with near-term
resistance seen around 81.30, this week's high. The dollar also
rose against the yen <JPY=>, inching up to 89.15 yen from
around 89.07 yen late on Thursday in New York.
"If dollar/yen climbs back above 90 yen," Shimizu said,
"the Nikkei could break out of range-bound trade, with the next
target likely being around 10,500."
U.S. stocks rose on Thursday on the stronger-than-expected
retail sales and a fall in first-time jobless claims. The Dow
Jones industrial average <> closed up 47.38 points, or 0.46
percent, at 10,444.14.
February's monthly sales performance among U.S. retailers
was the strongest since just before the recession started in
2007. The United States reported that first-time claims for
jobless benefits fell by 29,000 to a seasonally adjusted
469,000 in the latest week. [] []
On Friday, it releases its comprehensive monthly report on
non-farm payrolls, the most closely watched figures on the U.S.
labour market.
The report is expected to show a loss of 50,000 jobs in
February, compared with 20,000 job cuts in January, a Reuters
poll shows.
In the commodities markets, spot gold <XAU=> was at
$1,132.40, down slightly from New York's close and it is
expected to trade in a tight range ahead of the U.S. payrolls
data due at 1330 GMT.
U.S. NYMEX crude <CLc1> was up 39 cents at $80.66 a barrel.
A short squeeze in the euro <EUR=> appeared to have run its
course, with investors once again fretting about Greece.
Traders said the market was likely to stay cautious,
steering clear of higher-yielding currencies, ahead of the U.S.
jobs data.
"Greece worries continue and with investors still cautious
about risk, I would have a bias towards the U.S. dollar ahead
of the payrolls data," said Jonathan Cavenagh, currency
strategist at Westpac.
The euro was down at $1.3572 from $1.3589 late in New York
on Thursday when it lost 0.8 percent. It had risen above $1.37
following a robust response to a Greek debt auction on
Thursday.
But if fell after the chief of the European Central Bank
(ECB), Jean-Claude Trichet, said recovery in Europe would be
uneven, squashing any outside chances of a near-term rise in
record low euro zone interest rates.
The ECB, as expected, kept rates unchanged on Thursday, but
took a small step in unwinding some its extraordinary support
for the economy. [].
Investors also fretted whether Greece's fresh plans to
address its debt woes would win wider support in the European
Union ahead of a meeting of German Chancellor Angela Merkel
with the Greek prime minister later on Friday.[].
The single currency has lost nearly 10 percent since
November last year when sovereign debt problems surrounding
Greece and other peripheral euro zone economies emerged.
(Additional reporting by Anirban Nag in Sydney, Daniel
Bases in New York and Aiko Hayashi in Tokyo; Editing by Neil
Fullick)
