Tokyo led the advance, with the Nikkei jumping 2.1%. MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1.1% and hit its highest level this month.
The Hang Seng climbed 0.6%, but Chinese blue chips were an outlier, slipping 0.1% a day after closing at a near three-month high.
The MSCI world equity index added 0.2% to 710.34, a fraction off the all-time closing high of 710.36 set on May 7.
European share markets looked set to open stronger, with pan-region Euro Stoxx 50 futures up 0.4% in early deals. FTSE futures were also 0.4% higher.
U.S. stocks were also poised for further gains after the S&P 500’s 0.1% rise overnight, with futures pointing to a 0.3% increase at the open.
Positive signals on the economy helped lift benchmark Treasury yields back above 1.6% overnight. The 10-year note yielded 1.6181% in Asia on Friday, from as low as 1.5520% mid-week.
Friday will be the last trading day of the month for Wall Street due to a national holiday on Monday.
· China stocks post best week in 3 months on easing inflation fears, yuan strength
China stocks slipped on Friday, but posted their best week in more than three months as inflation and policy tightening worries faded and a strong yuan boosted foreign inflows into the country’s equities market.
The blue-chip CSI300 index fell 0.3% to 5,321.09, while the Shanghai Composite Index eased 0.2% to 3,600.78.
The tech-heavy start-up board ChiNext rose 0.2%, while Shanghai’s STAR50 index shed 0.8%.
For the week, CSI300 advanced 5.9%, while SSEC climbed 4.5%, both logging their best weekly gains since the week ended Feb 12.
· India's blue-chip Nifty 50 hits record high as COVID-19 cases drop
India’s blue-chip Nifty 50 index hit a record high on Friday as falling COVID-19 infection rates boosted sentiment, while investors awaited a key indirect tax-related meeting by the country’s finance minister later in the day.
The NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.68% at 15,440.30 by 0503 GMT, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex was 0.59% higher at 51,417.84. Both the indexes have gained around 2% for the week.
India posted its lowest daily rise in COVID-19 cases in over a month.
The pan-European Stoxx 600 gained 0.2% in early trade, with media stocks adding 0.6% to lead gains as all sectors except autos inched into positive territory.
The European blue chip index notched an intraday all-time high on Thursday at 447.82 points, before paring gains slightly to close at 446.44. Investors will be expecting fresh highs Friday.
· FTSE 100 rises on banks, commodity boost
London’s FTSE 100 index edged higher on Friday, led by gains in heavyweight banking and commodity stocks, while investors awaited key U.S. inflation data that has kept them on edge this week.
The blue-chip index rose 0.3% with banks adding more than 1%. HSBC Holdings provided the biggest boost.
· Credit Suisse scandals prompt Switzerland to think unthinkable: punish bankers
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