Summary MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares (.MIAP00000PUS) added 0.29 per cent
TOKYO: (Reuters) - Asian equities gained on Friday while the dollar hovered near a one-month high as investors braced for crucial U.S. jobs data later in the day that should provide clues on how aggressive the Federal Reserve will be in tightening policy.
Japan s Nikkei (.N225) rose 0.39%, while South Korea s Kospi (.KS11) jumped 0.77%. Australia s stock benchmark (.AXJO) was 0.56% higher.
Hong Kong s Hang Seng (.HSI) rallied 0.6%, although mainland blue chips <.CSI300) were flat in early trading.
MSCI s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares (.MIAP00000PUS) added 0.29%, putting it on track for a 1.55% advance for the first week of 2023, its best weekly performance in a month.
U.S. E-mini stock futures ticked up 0.35%, pointing to a small bounce after the 1.16% overnight slide for the S&P 500 (.SPX).
Wall Street sold off amid worries that a robustness in the jobs market would keep the Fed raising rates for longer, after data released on Thursday showed a bigger than expected rise in private payrolls and a drop in jobless claims.
"There is concern that the labor market isn t showing any signs of cooling," putting financial markets "very much on edge", said Tony Sycamore, a market analyst at IG.
"But the important one is going to be tonight, and I don t think the bogey man is going to be in the cupboard with tonight s number."
According to a Reuters survey of economists, non-farm payrolls are forecast to show on Friday that 200,000 jobs were created in December, easing from November s 263,000 pace.
U.S. two-year Treasury yields spiked to a more than two-month high of 4.497% overnight but eased to 4.460% in Tokyo. The 10-year yield , which rose as high as 3.784% in New York, dropped to 3.726%.
The U.S. currency remained elevated versus major peers on Friday. The dollar index , which measures the greenback against six counterparts including the euro and yen, was trading little changed at 105.11 after jumping 0.91% overnight and touching 105.27 for the first time since Dec. 8.
The dollar index is up 1.57% this week, putting it on course to snap a streak of three losing weeks. It is shaping up for the best performance since late September.
The greenback added 0.27% to 133.755 yen , taking it back towards Thursday s one-week high of 134.045.
The euro edged 0.09% higher to $1.05295, but remained close to the overnight low of $1.0515, a level last seen on Dec. 12.
Crude oil rose, extending gains from Thursday after data showed lower fuel inventories.
Brent crude futures were last 79 cents, or 1%, higher at $79.48 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were up 80 cents, or 1.1%, at $74.47 a barrel.
