GLOBAL MARKETS-World stocks, oil lower ahead of Bernanke

                                
 * MSCI world equity index down 0.3 pct at 287.62
                                
 * Dollar weaker as ahead of Bernanke testimony
                                
 * Oil lower, government bonds firmer
                                
 
                                
 By Natsuko Waki
                                
 LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters) - World stocks hit a one-week low
on Wednesday while U.S. stock futures pointed to a steady open
as investors looked to congressional testimony from Federal
Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke for more clarity on interest rates.
                                
 Investors remained wary after Tuesday's sharp drop in U.S.
consumer confidence and a fall in German business sentiment.
U.S. consumer confidence in February slumped to a 10-month low
as the short-term outlook on jobs worsened. [ID:nN23102211]
                                
 Bernanke gives semiannual testimony on monetary policy and
the state of the economy before the U.S. House Financial
Services Committee. Investors are keen to hear if a surprise
hike in the discount rate last week could bring forward broader
policy tightening -- a move that would be negative for risky
assets such as stocks.
                                
 "The move to lift the discount rate was clearly the first
step into a tightening mode," said Heino Ruland, strategist at
Ruland Research, in Frankfurt. 
                                
 "Combined with the rather disappointing consumer sentiment
numbers yesterday, people are just afraid that any tightening by
the Fed might effectively kill the economic recovery which is
still at a very early stage."
                                
 World stocks as measured by MSCI <.MIWD00000PUS> fell 0.3
percent while the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <.FTEU3> index
of top shares lost 0.1 percent. U.S. stock futures <SPc1> were
unchanged on the day, pointing to a steady open on Wall Street.
                                
 "I think what Bernanke says today will govern the direction
of markets for the next five weeks at least," said Howard
Wheeldon, a strategist at BGC Partners.
                                
 
                                
 DOLLAR AND FED
Various Fed officials have sought to allay fears of early
policy tightening. Interest rate futures fully price in a chance
that the Fed would raise the cost of borrowing in November
<FEDWATCH>.
                                
 "There's ... some nervousness about what Bernanke is going
to say today," said Johan Javeus, chief currency strategist at
SEB in Stockholm.
                                
 The Fed needed to outline the significance of last week's
raising of the Fed's discount rate for monetary tightening,
Javeus said.
                                
 The dollar was slightly lower against major currencies
<.DXY>. The euro was at a near nine-month low versus the dollar
at $1.3544 <EUR=>.
                                
 The bund future rose 30 ticks <FGBLc1>. The yield premium
that investors demand to buy 10-year Greek government bonds
rather than German benchmarks rose to 347 basis points, its
widest since Feb. 9 <GR10YT=RR> <EU10YT=RR>.
                                
 Greek public and private sector unions began a strike on
Wednesday against a wage freeze and tax rises imposed as part of
the crisis-hit government's austerity plan.
  (Additional reporting by Simon Falush and Naomi Tajitsu;
Editing by Ruth Pitchford)