NEW YORK, March 19 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury yields

eased back from their highs on Thursday, paring their earlier

increase that appeared driven by technical factors, even as

fresh data pointed to labor market resilience and improving

manufacturing activity in the U.S. Northeast.

The releases supported the view that the Federal Reserve

can afford to be patient before restarting its rate-cutting

cycle.

In morning trading, the two-year yield, which reflects

interest rate expectations, was last up 14.7 basis points (bps)

at 3.889%, while the benchmark 10-year yield rose

4.7 bps 4.304%.