(Updates with new comment, refreshes prices at 1445 GMT)

By Lewis Krauskopf and Amanda Cooper

NEW YORK/LONDON, March 28 (Reuters) - A gauge of global

shares edged up on Thursday as it headed for its second straight

quarter of solid gains, while a strong dollar kept the yen

languishing near its weakest in decades amid the threat of

intervention from Japanese authorities.

Wall Street's main stock indexes opened little changed and

markets broadly were largely rangebound ahead of Friday's

much-anticipated U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE)

price index data, a closely watched inflation measure. Few

markets will be open to assess and respond to the fresh data,

however, given the long Easter weekend in many countries.

"People are probably a little cautious about positioning

ahead of PCE," said Sameer Samana, senior global market

strategist at the Wells Fargo Investment Institute.

"For a lot of people today will be the last day of the week,

they are probably squaring positions for the quarter, for the

month."

Heightened focus was on the yen, which last

strengthened 0.06% against the greenback at 151.21 per dollar,

having slid to a 34-year low of 151.975 in the previous session.

Japan's three main monetary authorities held an emergency

meeting on Wednesday to discuss the weak yen, and suggested they

were ready to intervene in the market to stop what they

described as disorderly and speculative moves in the currency.

"Once dollar/yen touches 152, I think there will probably be

a sharp move upward, and that's when intervention could take

place," said Takeshi Ishida, a currency strategist at Resona

Holdings.

The dollar gained on the euro after a U.S. Federal Reserve

policymaker said he wasn't in a hurry to cut rates.

Fed Governor Christopher Waller said on Wednesday that

recent disappointing inflation data affirms the case for the

central bank to hold off on cutting its short-term interest rate

target, but he did not rule out trimming rates later in the

year.

The dollar index fell 0.03% at 104.39, with the euro

down 0.18% at $1.0807.

MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe

rose 0.05%. The index was on pace to post a gain of over 7% for

the first quarter.

Wall Street's main indexes were little changed in

late-morning trade ahead of quarter end.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 20.96 points,

or 0.05%, to 39,739.12, the S&P 500 gained 4.91 points,

or 0.09%, to 5,253.36 and the Nasdaq Composite gained

8.18 points, or 0.05%, to 16,407.70.

Data on Thursday showed the U.S. economy grew faster than

previously estimated in the fourth quarter, lifted by strong

consumer spending and business investment in nonresidential

structures like factories. Gross domestic product increased at a

3.4% annualized rate last quarter, revised up from the

previously reported 3.2% pace.

U.S. Treasury yields ticked down slightly after the release

of the GDP data, but remained in narrow bands ahead of an early

close before the Friday's market holiday.

The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes last

edged down to 4.194%, from 4.196% late on Wednesday.

Oil prices rose as investors anticipated tighter supplies

given the OPEC+ producer alliance is widely expected to stay the

course on its current production cuts.

U.S. crude gained 1.2% to $82.33 a barrel and Brent

rose to $87.26 per barrel, up 1.36% on the day.