* Indexes up: Dow 0.15%, S&P 500 0.31%, Nasdaq 0.52%

* US nonfarm payroll jump the most in 15 months in March

* ISM non-manufacturing PMI slightly below March

expectations

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

buyout deal

(Updates for market open)

By Purvi Agarwal and Avinash P

April 6 (Reuters) - Wall Street's main indexes inched

higher on Monday after marking their biggest weekly jump in four

months in the previous session, while investors assessed

prospects of an end to the Middle East conflict.

The U.S. and Iran were weighing the framework of a plan to

end the hostilities, though Iran rejected any immediate move to

reopen the Strait of Hormuz. U.S. President Donald Trump set a

Tuesday deadline to reopen the waterway.

Still, investors drew some comfort from a report that

indicated the U.S., Iran and a group of regional mediators are

discussing the terms for a potential 45-day ceasefire.

"The stock market is a very good barometer of future

activities ... investors are expecting a recovery from the

selloff that we experienced," said Sam Stovall, chief investment

strategist at CFRA Research.

"Wall Street is willing to take a wait-and-see attitude, but

is betting that the outcome is positive."

The S&P 500 information technology index was the

biggest boost, up 0.4%, with chip-linked stocks leading the

charge. Memory chipmaker Seagate ( STX ) gained 8.3% after

Morgan Stanley added it to its top-pick list. The Philadelphia

SE Semiconductor index was up 0.8%.

Industrials and mining stocks fell 0.3%

and 0.7%, respectively.

Gains in JPMorgan Chase ( JPM ) and Goldman Sachs ( GS )

lifted the Dow.

At 10:02 a.m. ET, the Dow Jones Industrial Average

rose 68.86 points, or 0.15%, to 46,573.53, the S&P 500

gained 22.22 points, or 0.31%, to 6,604.91 and the Nasdaq

Composite gained 117.62 points, or 0.52%, to 21,992.14.

Trading volumes on Monday were expected to be thin as many

markets in Europe and Asia are closed for public holidays.

The CBOE Volatility Index, also known as Wall

Street's fear gauge, ticked up 0.47 points to 24.34.

Pete Mulmat, head of brokerage strategy and operations at IG

North America, said stocks and the VIX index were up

simultaneously as markets were buying into the Trump "deadline

extension" trade and not on genuine optimism.

Wall Street's main indexes posted their first weekly gains

in six weeks as the prospects of an end to the conflict soothed

investor nerves.

Markets will scrutinize domestic inflation readings this

week to gauge if the conflict-driven spikes in energy prices

have trickled into the U.S. economy. Friday's data showed U.S.

job growth rebounded more than expected in March, supporting the

view the Federal Reserve could keep rates on hold.

Money market participants are not pricing in any easing from

the central bank this year, compared to two cuts they had

expected before the war broke out, per CME Group's FedWatch

Tool.

On Monday, the Institute for Supply Management's

non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index for March came in

at 54, slightly below estimates of 54.9, according to economists

polled by Reuters.

Among others, Soleno Therapeutics ( SLNO ) shares surged

about 32% after Neurocrine Biosciences ( NBIX ) agreed to

acquire the rare-disease drugmaker for $2.9 billion in cash.

U.S.-listed shares of cryptocurrency-linked firms rose, with

Coinbase and Strategy up 2% and 4.3%,

respectively, as bitcoin prices edged higher.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by a 1.48-to-1 ratio

on the NYSE and by a 1.81-to-1 ratio on the Nasdaq.

The S&P 500 posted five new 52-week highs and one new low,

while the Nasdaq Composite recorded 37 new highs and 31 new

lows.