* Indexes up: Dow 0.03%, S&P 500 0.09%, Nasdaq 0.14%

* March job gains surpass expectations, unemployment rate

dips

* ISM non-manufacturing PMI decelerates, priced paid hit

3-1/2-year high

* Soleno Therapeutics ( SLNO ) surges on Neurocrine's $2.9 bln

buyout deal

(Updates to mid-afternoon)

By Stephen Culp and Purvi Agarwal

April 6 (Reuters) - Wall Street edged higher on Monday

as investors looked for signs of progress toward a U.S.-Iran

ceasefire deal amid President Donald Trump's progressively

heated threats, should Iran fail to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has rejected the U.S. proposal for an immediate

ceasefire, insisting instead on a permanent end to the war,

according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). The

rejection followed Trump's increasingly bellicose ultimatums,

vowing to rain "hell" on Iran if the crucial Strait of Hormuz

bottleneck remains closed to oil tanker traffic.

Investors drew some reassurance from a report that indicated

the U.S., Iran and a group of regional mediators continued to

discuss terms of a potential ceasefire.

All three major U.S. indexes advanced slightly, with the S&P

500 and the Nasdaq on track for the fourth consecutive day of

gains.

"On a day like today investors don't do much of anything,"

said Thomas Martin, senior portfolio manager at GLOBALT in

Atlanta. "We don't know where the truth lies with any of the

stories really, whether it's on the U.S. side, the Iran side, or

the Pakistan side."

Martin said, "Trump really has to get the Strait of Hormuz

open ... he's made a big deal about this one," and added that

investors "are all waiting on pins and needles."

The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has roiled marketsfor a little

over a month. Spiking crude prices stoked inflation fears, and

stocks have tumbled. Even though the S&P was on track for its

fourth consecutive session of gains, the bellwether index

remains down 4% since the conflict began.

Economic data on Monday showed the U.S. services sector

expanded at a slower-than-expected pace in March, even as

employment contracted in the sector and prices paid, an

inflation predictor, surged to its highest level since October

2022.

The much-anticipated March jobs report, released on the Good

Friday market holiday, showed the U.S. economy added 178,000

jobs last month, nearly triple the 60,000 consensus, an upside

surprise dampened by a revision of February's job losses, to

133,000 from 92,000.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 15.40 points,

or 0.03%, to 46,519.35, the S&P 500 gained 5.96 points,

or 0.09%, to 6,588.65 and the Nasdaq Composite gained

31.57 points, or 0.14%, to 21,910.75.

Of the 11 major sectors in the S&P 500, communication

services enjoyed the largest percentage gains, while

materials were the biggest laggards.

Travel/leisure stocks and aerospace & defense

were clear outperformers.

Trading volumes on Monday were expected to be thin as many

markets in Europe and Asia are closed for public holidays.

Shares of Soleno Therapeutics ( SLNO ) jumped 32.4% after

Neurocrine Biosciences ( NBIX ) agreed to acquire the

rare-disease drugmaker for $2.9 billion in cash.

Rising bitcoin prices helped U.S.-listed shares of

cryptocurrency-linked firms Coinbase and Strategy

advance 1.8% and 3.9%, respectively.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.47-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE. There were 68 new highs and 41 new lows on the

NYSE.

On the Nasdaq, 2,787 stocks rose and 1,843 fell as advancing

issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.51-to-1 ratio.

The S&P 500 posted 7 new 52-week highs and one new low while

the Nasdaq Composite recorded 50 new highs and 56 new lows.