SYDNEY, Feb 15 (Reuters) - The Australian dollar slipped on Thursday after a surprisingly weak set of jobs numbers led investors to price in more chance of rate cuts this year, pulling bond yields lower.

Employment rose just 500 in January, when analysts had looked for a bounce of 30,000 after a steep fall in December. The jobless rate also pushed up to a two-year high of 4.1%, a clear loosening of the labour market that should help put downward pressure on inflation.

Analysts cautioned that changes to seasonal patterns in the jobs market were creating more volatility in the series, and February could well see a sizeable rebound in employment.

Still, the softening trend was enough to send three-year bond futures up 10 ticks to 96.250. Yields on 10-year notes dropped to 4.173%, having been as high as 4.311% on Wednesday.

Investors nudged the Aussie down slightly to $0.6485 , and back toward its recent three-month low of $0.6443. The kiwi dollar held steady at $0.6089, having bounced from support around $0.6050 overnight.

Rate futures shifted to imply around 39 basis points of rate cuts from the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) this year, compared to 28 basis points ahead of the data.

A first cut is still seen as unlikely until August, when the market is pricing in a 76% chance.

"The RBA can probably take comfort from the fact that other indicators it tracks point to increased labour market slack," said Abhijit Surya, an economist at Capital Economics. "Hours worked plunged 2.5% m/m, adding to the evidence that the economy is cooling in earnest."

"If the data flow continue to surprise on the downside, we suspect that the RBA will be cutting rates by August, rather than November as most analysts expect."

RBA Governor Michele Bullock appeared before lawmakers early on Thursday but offered little guidance on policy, saying only that the central bank was in a good position to get inflation down to target in a reasonable timeframe.

Over in New Zealand, markets still imply around a 50% chance the next move in rates will be upward, given the past hawkish leanings of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand.

The head of the central bank gives a speech on inflation and the economy early on Friday morning and could shift the policy outlook once more. (Reporting by Wayne Cole; Editing by Jamie Freed)