* Asian stocks weak ahead of U.S. non-farm payrolls data
* Aussie dollar gets brief lift from upbeat c.bank
statement
* Sterling stable after plunging on shock BoE pump priming
By Susan Fenton
HONG KONG, Aug 7 (Reuters) - Asian stocks dipped on Friday
as investors nervously awaited a key U.S. jobs report, while
the Australian dollar got only a brief lift despite signals
from the central bank that interest rates could rise over time.
U.S. President Barack Obama told a crowd in Virginia that
he saw the "very beginnings" of the end of recession but
investors wanted to see all-important U.S. non-farm payrolls
data later for firmer evidence the world's biggest economy has
turned the corner.
Major European stock futures <STXEc1> were down 0.4 percent
while U.S. equity futures <SPc1> were up 0.04 percent.
Australia's central bank indicated it could pre-empt the
world and raise interest rates if its economy continues to
improve, giving the the Aussie dollar <AUD=> a brief boost.
[]
"Among industrial nations Australia has higher interest
rates. A view that its economy will benefit from demand from
China, whose economy is supported by stimulus measures, is
making investors tend to flock to the Aussie," said Ayako Sera,
a market strategist at Sumitomo Trust & Banking in Tokyo.
Corporate earnings' reports out of Asia continued to
highlight the impact of global recession and Japanese consumer
electronics maker Pioneer Corp <6773.T> saw its shares dive
more than 5 percent at one stage in Tokyo after posting a
quarterly loss [].
Japan's Nikkei share index <> managed to eke out a 0.2
percent gain though, its highest close in 10 months.
Airlines did better than some sectors in the region. Japan
Airlines <9205.T> announced a first-quarter loss but its shares
slipped just 0.6 percent. Malaysia Airlines' <MASM.KL> shares
jumped more than 7 percent at one point as the carrier returned
to profit in the second quarter [].
FOREIGN BUYING
The MSCI index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan
<.MIAPJ0000PUS> was down 0.9 percent by midafternoon, but has
rallied around 77 percent since a rebound in global equities
began on March 9.
A string of improved economic data in the region in the
past week has lifted risk appetite but investors are not
convinced yet that an economic upturn is sustainable.
Shares in Seoul rose 0.7 percent but the mood was cautious.
"Continued foreign buying is helping markets today," said
Lee Kyung-soo, a market analyst at Shinyoung Securities in
Seoul. "But there are concerns whether corporate earnings
growth in the third quarter would be as strong as that seen in
the second."
For further evidence of a global recovery, investors are
turning their focus to U.S. nonfarm payrolls data, which is
forecast to show 320,000 jobs were lost in July compared with a
loss of 467,000 jobs in June.
Concern that China could rein in easy money continued to
weigh on shares in China and Hong Kong where the Hang Seng
Index <> was down 1.4 percent. But China Mobile <0941.HK>
extended Thursday's gains, rising nearly 3 percent, on reports
the world's biggest telecom operator was going ahead with a
Shanghai listing.
Taiwan markets were closed due to a typhoon.
In the currency markets, sterling <GDP=> stabilised against
the U.S. dollar after plunging on the Bank of England's shock
announcement on Thursday that it was expanding its quantitative
easing plan as Britain's downturn appeared to have been deeper
than previously thought [].
Metals prices retreated for a second day, helping push down
Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 share index <> by 1
percent, as shares in mining giants BHP Billiton <BHP.AX> and
Rio Tinto <RIO.AX> both dropped more than 2 percent.
Copper prices have doubled this year, thanks to Chinese
demand, but they could quickly lose momentum if data suggests a
global economic recovery may take longer than hoped, analysts
said. Shanghai's benchmark copper prices <SCFc3> fell 2 percent
while Malaysian tin fell 2.6 percent following steep losses on
the London Metal Exchange.
Oil prices retreated after reaching six-week highs on
Thursday.
(Additional reporting by Kaori Kaneko in Tokyo and Jungyoun
Park in Seoul)
(Editing by Kazunori Takada)
