Regional Asia Equities Mixed Ahead Of US NFP Later

Asian equities are mixed this morning, with gains in energy stocks as oil prices rose amid diminishing expectations that OPEC and its allies will allow the market to become oversupplied. South Korea's Kospi led the way, rising as much as 1.5% after returning from a break on Thursday. Overall, the MSCI Asia Pacific Index edged up by as much as 0.3%, while trading remained cautious ahead of the US non-farm payroll data due later today.

• Japanese stocks fluctuated between gains and losses as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the US employment data on Friday and the Bank of Japan’s policy decision next week. The Topix is down 0.10% and the Nikkei has slipped 0.20%. Meanwhile, the USD/JPY has been range-bound recently but ticked higher this morning to 155.83 from 155.55.
• South Korea’s Kospi surged as much as 1.5% this morning, driven by foreign fund inflows, particularly into chipmakers such as SK Hynix, Samsung Electronics, and LG Energy Solution. The Kospi Index rose 3.2% over the past week, and the South Korean won strengthened by 1.3% against the dollar to 1,367.85.
• Taiwan equities are little changed today, with any further moves likely capped by lower semiconductor prices overnight, after the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index fell 0.86%. Later today we have Trade Balance data last month the trade balance surplus missed estimates as exports to China & HK fell 11.3%.
• Australian equities are slightly higher today with the ASX200 up 0.20% bolstered by gains in miners and consumer discretionary stocks. The benchmark is on track for its biggest weekly gain since February 2. Traders are now focusing on a key US jobs report, which is expected to influence the Federal Reserve’s policy outlook.
• Elsewhere in SEA, New Zealand Equities are 0.40% lower, Singapore equities are 0.30% higher, Malaysian equities are 0.35% while Philippines Equities are little changed