* Aussie dollar hit on central bank view
* U.S. dollar index firms for 5th straight session
* MSCI global stock index falls as Wall St slips
* European equities slightly higher on bank gains (Updates with close of U.S. markets)
By Chuck Mikolajczak and Lewis Krauskopf
NEW YORK, Feb 6 (Reuters) - The Australian dollar tumbled on Wednesday after the country's central bank signaled a possible interest-rate cut in the latest indication that a global economic slowdown is tilting policymakers toward looser monetary policy, while a gauge of world equity markets edged off two-month highs.
Wall Street's benchmark S&P 500 slipped amid concerns over growth, disappointing earnings reports and another possible U.S. government shutdown in the wake of President Donald Trump's State of the Union address on Tuesday. European shares gained slightly. central bank was the latest to signal policy easing in the face of economic headwinds. Last week, the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would be patient on further rate hikes as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the case for rate increases had "weakened," and the European Central Bank sounded less certain that it will start tightening policy later this year. about-face pushed the Australian dollar AUD= down 1.62 percent against the U.S. dollar, putting it on track for its biggest daily drop since November 2016. In turn, the U.S. dollar moved higher against a basket of major currencies. are starting to see central banks follow Powell's lead," said Chris Gaffney, president of world markets at TIAA Bank in St. Louis. "That's what's actually contributed to this dollar rally that we have seen recently."
The dollar index .DXY , which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, rose 0.32 percent. The euro EUR= was down 0.42 percent to $1.1364. The index was on pace for a fifth day of gains.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI fell 21.22 points, or 0.08 percent, to 25,390.3, the S&P 500 .SPX lost 6.09 points, or 0.22 percent, to 2,731.61, and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 26.80 points, or 0.36 percent, to 7,375.28.
Shares of videogame makers Electronic Arts EA.O and Take-Two Interactive Software TTWO.O tumbled more than 10 percent after both companies gave disappointing forecasts. the S&P 500 has surged more than 16 percent since Dec. 24.
“After the big run-up that we have had, we are basically in more of a pause, digestion period, where we are seeing some churning but not a big overall move for the market," said Keith Lerner, chief market strategist with SunTrust Advisory Services in Atlanta.
European stocks were buoyed by gains in Italian banks and tech stocks. pan-European STOXX 600 index .STOXX rose 0.15 percent while MSCI's gauge of stocks across the globe .MIWD00000PUS shed 0.28 percent.
Benchmark U.S. 10-year notes US10YT=RR last rose 3/32 in price to yield 2.6946 percent, from 2.704 percent late on Tuesday.
Signs of strong U.S. demand for distillate products and tightening global crude supply boosted oil prices, but gains were capped by the rising U.S. dollar and ongoing concerns about a global economic slowdown. crude CLcv1 settled up 0.7 percent at $54.01 a barrel, while Brent LCOcv1 settled at $62.69 a barrel, up 1.2 percent.
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http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl GRAPHIC-World FX rates in 2019
http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh GRAPHIC-Asia-Pacific equities performance in 2019
https://tmsnrt.rs/2HLNW4z GRAPHIC-All aboard the Emerging Market express
https://tmsnrt.rs/2SnJk97
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