U.S. stocks fell on Thursday, hit by nervousness ahead of Friday's jobs report and lingering uncertainty over a Greece aid deal with creditors.

A persistent sell-off in bond markets left financial market confidence in short supply on Thursday, with stocks lower globally and not even traditional safe havens like gold and the Swiss franc providing much of a refuge.

U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday, helped by optimism that Greece was close to an agreement to avoid default and as further gains in bond yields lifted financials.

German debt yields added to their biggest jump in almost three years and the euro held on to its gains on Wednesday, as investors waited to hear the ECB's view of a turbulent run for markets and its hopes for a Greek aid deal.

U.S. stocks eased on Tuesday as a jump in bond yields hit utilities and other top dividend payers, but energy gains and optimism Greece is near a deal with creditors limited losses.

Last July, when Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen spurred a sell-off in healthcare stocks by saying that valuations in shares of biotech companies looked "stretched," portfolio manager Graham Tanaka saw an opportunity.

European shares dipped on Tuesday while German bond yields rose, with investors scrabbling for clarity over whether a high-level meeting on Greece's debt crisis might herald a significant breakthrough.

U.S. stocks ended with modest gains on Monday, recovering part of last week's losses in a session marked by cautious trading as investors reacted to mixed economic data.

Equities will be the riskiest asset class this year and through the next decade, but will also offer the highest returns and attract the biggest allocation boost from investors, a poll predicted on Monday.

European shares rose on Monday, helped by an almost five percent rally in Chinese stock markets and rumours of progress in Greece's debt talks that halted sales of the euro.