Asia-Pacific markets rise as China evaluates possibility of trade talks with the U.S.

Indian stocks swung between gains and losses on Friday.

The benchmark Nifty 50 was flat as of 1.35 p.m. local time, while the BSE Sensex gained 0.36%.

The 50-stock benchmark is up 2.73% since the start of the year and is set to see its third weekly gain.

Strong gains were seen in the Gautam Adani-backed  which surged 4.68%, , which jumped 3.73% and  which climbed 2.22%.

— Amala Balakrishner

Goldman Sachs expects Japan's Topix index to hit 2,800, after factoring in the impact of U.S. tariffs and a slowdown in GDP growth, according to Bruce Kirk, Chief Japan Equity Strategist. The Topix ended Friday's session up 0.31% to close at 2,687.78.

"We're looking for a 12-month target for Topix of 2,800, so some upside from here, but there are just so many known unknowns out there at the moment," Kirk said.

To entice more investment, Japanese companies have also offered benefits to shareholders through vouchers, coupons or even discounts to Tokyo Disneyland and baseball games, a practice known locally as Kabunushi Yuutai.

Kabunushi Yuutai is offered by about a third of listed Japanese companies to retail investors domiciled in the country, Kirk told CNBC's Martin Soong. For retail investors not based in Japan, companies that offer Kabunushi Yuutai tend to have better performance compared to those that don't, he said.

"Companies with Kabunushi Yuutai programs, specifically amongst the small, mid-caps, trade better than those companies that don't, and they trade with lower volatility, and they have higher valuation."

- Diane Jorolan, Neha Hegde

The Hong Kong-listed shares of Standard Chartered climbed as much as 4% on Friday after its first-quarter profit surpassed expectations on the back of strong growth in its wealth management, global markets and global banking businesses.

The bank's profit before taxation for the January-March quarter came in at $2.103 billion, up from $1.91 billion in the same period a year ago.

— Amala Balakrishner, Lee Ying Shan

Australian stocks rallied for the seventh consecutive session on Friday.

The 200-stock benchmark S&P/ASX 200 climbed 1.13% to end the day at 8,238, its highest level since February 27. The strong moves come just before the country heads to the polls on Saturday.

Gains were led by banking stocks with counters like Macquarie Group and Westpac Banking surging 2.62% and 1.92% respectively.

Shares of the other two big lenders - Commonwealth Bank and the National Australia Bank - rose 1.44% and 1.36% respectively.

Meanwhile, the major miners also notched gains in choppy trade.

Fortescue ended the day 1.05% higher, while both Rio Tinto and BHP Group were up 0.66%.

— Amala Balakrishner

Asian currencies strengthened Friday as investors awaited clarity on U.S.-China trade tensions after the Asian giant announced it is mulling trade talks with the world's largest economy.

The offshore Chinese yuan appreciated 0.25% to 7.2686 against the dollar as at 12.11 p.m. Singapore time. This is its strongest level since April 4.

Taiwan's dollar strengthen 2.5% to 31.305 against the dollar, its highest level since October 1, 2024.

Elsewhere in the region, the Indian rupee strengthened sharply in early trade.

The Korean won appreciated 0.97% against the dollar to 1,421.22 while the Australian dollar gained 0.42% to 0.6410 against the dollar.

The Japanese yen, traditionally perceived as a haven during periods of market tumult, strengthened marginally by 0.1% against the dollar to $145.31.

Southeast Asian currencies also gained against the greenback.

The Thai baht strengthened 0.84% to 33.25 while the Indonesian rupiah increased 0.63% to 16,490 against the dollar after briefly hitting its highest level since March 18 earlier in the session.

Meanwhile, the Philippine peso gained 0.39% by 55.655 while the Singapore dollar appreciated 0.36% to 1.3061 against the dollar.

— Amala Balakrishner

The  rose sharply on Friday, on the back of an increase in equity inflows from foreign banks, a struggling U.S. dollar and tense India-Pakistan relations.

As at 9.33 a.m. local time, the rupee had appreciated by 0.77% against the U.S. dollar to 83.9275.

This is the first time since October 2024 that the currency has climbed past 84 against the U.S. dollar.

— Amala Balakrishner

Copper rose sharply on Friday after China said it was evaluating the possibility of trade talks with the U.S.

The metal gained for a second day, and was trading 0.89 higher at $9,206 a ton on the London Metal Exchange as at 11.11 a.m. Singapore time.

Meanwhile, iron ore futures in Singapore added 0.42% to $96.60.

China's consideration of talks with the U.S. is good news for base metals as they have taken a hit from U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on China.

Experts had previously highlighted that the Asian giant's copper stockpiles would take a hit if its trade relations with the U.S. remain tense.

— Amala Balakrishner

Taiwan's benchmark Taiex index surged 2.07% as of 11.04 a.m. local time, extending its gains for the fifth consecutive session.

Gains were led by the utilities, industrials and technology sectors, data from LSEG shows.

The top three performers were RiTdisplay Corp which advanced 10%, Ying Han Technology which added 9.95% and U-Ming Marine Transport which increased by 9.94%.

Meanwhile, shares of tech giants Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co and Hon Hai Precision Industry - known globally as Foxconn - were last seen trading 3.19% and 3.53% higher, respectively,

The iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF shows the index's moves:

— Amala Balakrishner

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Tech Index surged Friday, following China's announcement that it is considering the possibility of trade talks with the U.S.

The tech-heavy index surged 3.01% as at 10.42 a.m. local time.

The top three performers in the index were Xpeng, which soared 5.49%, Horizon Robotics, which added 5.05% and Kingsoft Corporation, which increased 5.04%

The Hang Seng Tech Index ETF shows the day's moves:

Meanwhile, the Hang Seng Index was last seen up 1.52%, extending its gains from its previous two sessions.

— Amala Balakrishner

Bitcoin rose sharply early Friday, reversing its losses from earlier in the week. The cryptocurrency is now fast approaching $100,000 — a threshold it last traded at on February 7.

As at 8.35 a.m. Singapore time, Bitcoin had advanced 0.34% to $96,805.58.

— Amala Balakrishner

Japan's unemployment rate in March edged higher to 2.5%, the government data showed Friday, as the country faces heightened uncertainty surrounding U.S. tariffs and shrinking corporate profits.

The jobless rate was higher than the February level and Reuters-polled analysts' forecast of 2.4%, according to LSEG data.

The jobs-to-applicants ratio widened to 1.26 in March from 1.24 in February, separate labour ministry data showed, compared with the forecast of 1.25 in a Reuters poll.

The Bank of Japan kept its key policy rate unchanged in a decision Thursday and sharply cut its growth forecasts citing tariff headwinds.

— Anniek Bao

South Korea's inflation rate rose 2.1% year on year in April, the same pace as the month before.

This follows higher prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages, clothing and shoes and education, data released by Statistics Korea on Friday showed.

The reading is slightly above the 2% increase expected by economists polled by Reuters and now offers the Bank of Korea room to consider resuming its rate-cut cycle in its policy meeting later in the month.

On a seasonally adjusted month on month basis, South Korea's inflation edged up 0.1% in April.

This is its lowest reading since November 2024 and is marginally below the 0.2% rise in the previous month.

— Amala Balakrishner