* World shares down almost half a percent <.MIWD00000PUS>
* Dlr little changed, EZ bonds up as mkts eye jobs data
* U.S. non-farm payrolls to show 340,000 jobs shed in Nov
By Veronica Brown
LONDON, Dec 5 (Reuters) - World share prices struggled on
Friday, while euro zone government bonds rose as investors tried
to position themselves for key jobs data that is expected to
paint a stark picture of a fast-deteriorating U.S. economy.
Global stocks, as measured by MSCI's all-country index, were
down almost half a percent on the day.
Currency market participants were reticent to move the U.S.
dollar <.DXY> out of narrow ranges after significant interest
rate cuts on Thursday from the euro zone, Britain, Sweden, New
Zealand and Denmark put it on the defensive.
With the latest round of monetary easing aimed stimulating
growth out of the way, investors were looking towards U.S.
non-farm payrolls with something akin to dread.
Economists expect the data, due at 1330 GMT, to show
340,000 jobs were shed in November. Such a reading would mark
the biggest monthly drop in more than two decades.
"We're having to get used to these traumatic releases and
it's easy to forget the sheer scale of the destruction of the
jobs and labour market," Rabobank markets strategist Jeremy
Stretch said.
Bond buyers emerged in anticipation of a weak U.S. payrolls
reading. The Bund future <FGBLc1> was 28 ticks up at 123.62
versus Thursday's settlement close, having earlier moved up to
within a point of the 124.91 record high struck on Thursday.
Two-year yields <EU2YT=RR> were down around two basis points
at 2.15 percent, while 10-year yields were lower on the day at
3.06 percent.
"Today, the bond market will retain the view that the
economic environment is poor, that the global economy is weak
... and that inflation is no longer a concern," said Rene
Defossez, strategist at Natixis in Paris.
"The environment is in favour of bonds. You have all the
ingredients for a bull market," he said.
SHARES HEAD SOUTH
European stocks felt the pinch of uncertainty and extended
early losses to fall 1.5 percent in early trade <> as
commodity shares tracked weaker industrial metal and crude oil
<CLc1> prices. Bank shares also slipped.
"The markets are trying to evaluate how deep, how long and
how extended the contraction and consumer demand would be," said
Jonathan Lawlor, head of research firm Fox-Pitt, Kelton.
"And consumers will only start borrowing, purchasing and
basically driving the economy when they are more comfortable in
their job security, for example," he added.
In currency markets, the euro was steady at $1.2782 <EUR=>,
while the dollar was down 0.2 percent against the yen at 91.96
yen <JPY=>.
(Additional reporting by Jamie McGeever, Naomi Tajitsu and
Atul Prakash in London)
(Reporting by Veronica Brown; Editing by Andy Bruce)
