* Asia shares up slightly after big fall earlier in week
* U.S. stock futures up 0.4 pct, Facebook gains after bell
* U.S. 10-year yield hits 2.75 pct, high since April 2014
* Futures price in 3 Fed rate hikes this year
* Dollar still lacks momentum as focus on ECB, other cenbanks
By Hideyuki Sano
TOKYO, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Asian shares eked out modest gains on Thursday, clawing back sharp losses from earlier this week, however, rising U.S. bond yields and interest rates could dampen investors' optimism toward the global economic outlook.
The U.S. Federal Reserve flagged interest policy tightening later this year and upgraded inflation outlook, at its policy meeting that ended on Wednesday, its first in 2018 and last to be chaired by Janet Yellen, who will be replaced by governor Jerome Powell on Feb 3. It kept interest rates on hold as expected.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 0.1 percent in early trade, slowly recovering after Tuesday's 1.4 percent fall. Japan's Nikkei also gained, rising 1.3 percent from a four-week low hit the previous day.
U.S. S&P 500 mini futures gained 0.4 percent in Asian trade on Thursday, helped by 1.4 percent gains in Facebook in after-hours trading following the company's solid earnings.
Later in the day, three U.S. tech giants, Apple, Google parent Alphabet and Amazon.com will announce earnings.
Investors have been expecting strong profit growth in U.S. firms due to a sound global growth, with U.S. President Donald Trump's tax cuts seen giving an additional boost to Corporate America's bottom line.
Economic data released overnight underscored the strength of the global economy. ADP payrolls data in the United States showed job increases of 234,000 in January, 49,000 more than economists' forecast.
Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, a private business survey, came at 51.5, matching December's reading, which was the highest in four months, showing growth in China's manufacturing sector remained elevated in January.
"The U.S. is cutting tax and spending $1.5 trillion in infrastructure when the economy is really strong. There would be little wonder if the economy overheats," said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.
For a growing number of investors, the biggest worry now is that the economy may accelerate too fast, lifting inflation and prompting central banks to tighten their monetary policy faster.
The yield on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note - the benchmark for world lending - briefly shot up to 2.754 percent, a level last seen in April 2014. It last stood at 2.725 percent .