Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 1.73% or 506.19 points, to a high of 29,717.83 on Friday as other Asia-Pacific markets drifted higher. The rise in Asia-Pacific stocks follows U.S peers which climbed to record highs overnight, with the S&P 500 advancing 1% to a new closing high.
Australian ASX 200 gained 0.79% or 52.9 points to 6,766.80 as most sectors finished higher.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1.35% or 40.69 points to 3,054.39 as tech shares gained.
Chinese Shanghai Composite rose 0.47% or 16.25 points to 3,453.08 while the Shenzhen component gained 0.22% or 30.66 points, to 13,897.03
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index fell 1.62% in late-afternoon trading.
The Japanese Yen shed against the dollar to 108.98 from around 108.48 while the Australian dollar fell 0.44% to $0.7753.
Overall, the U.S dollar rose 0.33% to 91.722 against a basket of its peers on Friday afternoon during Asia trading hours.
Elsewhere, oil slipped on Friday afternoon, as U.S crude shed 0.7% at $65.56 a barrel while global benchmark Brent fell 0.6% to $69.21.
The rise in Asia-Pacific stocks comes when President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package amid inflationary concerns.
Most Asia-Pacific stocks are currently gaining. ASX 200 is up 0.79%, HSI is down 2.20%, SSE Composite Index is up 0.47%, KOSPI is up 1.35%.
