Investing.com - Share markets across the Asian-Pacific region opened on a positive note Friday, as investors monitored earnings from US tech heavyweights Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META), Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN).
By 11:45 am AEDT (12:45 am GMT) S&P/ASX 200 added 0.9%, KOSPI 200 lifted 1.3% and the Nikkei 225 added 0.5%.
US stocks made a significant recovery from post-Fed losses on Thursday, with strong gains recorded among both consumer discretionary and staples sectors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 369 points to 38519, the S&P 500 rose 1.3% to 4906, and the Nasdaq rallied 1.3% to 15361.
In the commodities market, Brent crude oil fell 2.2% to US$78.79 a barrel, while gold increased by 0.7% to US$2,054.48. In local bond markets, the yield on Australian 2 Year government bonds remained unchanged at 3.67%, as did the 10 Year yield at 4.01%. US Treasury notes were down, with the 2 Year yield at 4.21% and the 10 Year yield at 3.87%.
In Asia, Chinese shares ended mostly lower due to ongoing concerns over the country's economic outlook. In contrast, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 0.5% to close at 15566.21, led by the consumer and gaming sectors. Japan's Nikkei Stock Average fell by 0.8% to close at 36011.46, while Indian shares edged lower, mirroring Wall Street's overnight losses.
In Europe, shares fell after the Bank of England left UK interest rates on hold at 5.25%. The Stoxx Europe 600 dropped 0.4%, the CAC 40 retreated 0.9%, and the DAX slipped 0.3%, while the FTSE 100 lost earlier gains to edge 0.1% lower.