* Equities climb on U.S. jobs data
* Japanese and European stocks star
* Dollar flat
By Jeremy Gaunt, European Investment Correspondent
LONDON, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Developed market stocks climbed on
Thursday on hopes for renewed U.S. economic growth, although the
dollar and emerging markets steadied, unwilling to push a rally
further ahead of more data on Friday.
Upbeat sentiment after strong U.S. private-sector jobs
numbers on Wednesday helped keep oil above $90 a barrel.
But emerging market stocks were flat to weaker, bucking a
trend in which they usually outperform their developed market
counterparts on up days. The dollar was flat against a basket of
major currencies <.DXY>.
U.S. private employers added 297,000 jobs in December, ADP
Employer Services said, a figure that was nearly three times
what economists had forecast and the biggest jump on record for
ADP, which has data going back to 2000.
Jobs are often a lagging indicator of economic health and an
improvement can show that recovery is becoming more sustainable.
The ADP numbers raised expectations for Friday's non-farm
payrolls figures -- traditionally the month's major release.
"The data that we have seen up to November has been pretty
solid but one thing that has been lagging is the employment
market in the U.S. and there is a feeling that to really
underpin the recovery, the job market needs to turnaround," said
Giles Watts, head of equities at City Index.
World stocks as measured by MSCI <.MIWD00000PUS> were up 0.3
percent, mainly on the back of gains in Japan and Europe.
Emerging markets stocks <.MSCIEF> were flat to lower, hurt by
losses on Shanghai.
The pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 <> was up 0.6
percent for a more than 2.4 percent rise in the very short
year-to-date.
Japan's Nikkei <.N22%> stormed to an eight-month closing
high, up 1.4 percent for a nearly 3 percent gain in three
sessions.
DOLLAR STEADY
The dollar steadied after a surge in the previous session.
"The market expects a significantly strong figure for
Friday's payrolls, but they could be overestimating. So there is
scope for disappointment," said Lee Hardman, currency economist
at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The ADP report drove a 1.5 percent gain against the yen for
the dollar on Wednesday, its biggest one-day rise in more than
three months, although dollar-selling by Japanese exporters
tempered gains.
It was down 0.2 pct on Thursday at 83.05 yen <JPY=>.
The euro eased 0.2 percent to $1.3123 <EUR=>.
Core euro zone government debt opened lower, hurt by the
robust data.
Spanish newspaper El Pais reported that China's Vice Premier
Li Keqiang signalled at a meeting during a visit to Madrid that
his country is willing to buy about 6 billion euros of Spanish
public debt.
(Additional reporting by Tamawa Desai and Harpreet Bhal;
editing by Patrick Graham)
