Tokyo (Nikkei Average NIK, +0.35% ) up 0.4%
Hong Kong (Hang Seng Index HSI, +0.02% ) flat
Shanghai (Shanghai Composite Index SHCOMP, +0.30% ) up 0.3% (at break)
Sydney (S&P/ASX 200 XJO, +0.57% ) up 0.6%
Seoul (Kospi SEU, -0.08% ) down 0.1%
Mumbai (Sensex 1, +0.13% ) up 0.4%
Taipei (Taiex Y9999, -0.88% ) down 0.8%
Asian stocks outside Japan rose, paring weekly losses as US equity-index futures advanced. The yen held gains after inflation slowed more than forecast, while crude oil fell, trimming its best weekly climb since 2011.
The MSCI Asia Pacific excluding Japan Index added 0.1 per cent by 9.28 am in Tokyo, reducing its retreat in the week to 0.2 per cent. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index rebounded from its worst day this year, while Japan's Topix index headed for its first weekly decline since mid-January with the yen near a five- week high. Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures climbed 0.2 per cent following the gauge's longest slump since January. US oil slipped 1 per cent, paring its 11 per cent jump in the week.
Core inflation in Japan slowed to 2 per cent in February, trailing the 2.1 per cent projected by economists. Retail trade data is also due Friday, while China reports on industrial company profits before an update on fourth-quarter US growth. Mixed data in the past week has fueled concern over the American economy as analysts predict the forthcoming earnings season will see the first contraction in profits since 2009. Yemen has emerged as the latest ground for a proxy fight between Iran and Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter.
SINGAPORE share prices opened higher on Friday, with the Straits Times Index up 8.59 points or 0.25 per cent to 3,440.18 as at 9.05 am.
This is despite tepid losses in the US markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 40.31 points (0.23 per cent) to 17,678.23 after falling below 17,600 earlier in the session. The broad-based S&P 500 dropped 4.90 points (0.24 per cent) to 2,056.15, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index shed 13.16 points (0.27 per cent) at 4,863.36.
Top gainers in early morning trade include UOB, DBS and City Developments Limited.
Some 122.9 million shares worth S$93.6 million changed hands, with gainers outnumbering losers 90 to 54.
