Investing.com - Shares in the Asia-Pacific region opened in a mixed fashion on Friday, echoing a mixed performance among US indices overnight.
By 11:15 am AEST, (1:15 am GMT) the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3%, while the KOSPI 200 gained 0.9%, while the Nikkei 225 eased 0.1%.
In the US, the S&P 500 pulled back slightly from its recent record, primarily due to a dip in technology stocks like NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) and Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL). Nevertheless, gains in other sectors, such as consumer stocks and communication services, limited the overall market damage.
Analysts attribute the market's hesitation to make significant moves to the anticipation of Friday's monthly jobs report. This data will provide insights into the strength of the economy and the likelihood of the Federal Reserve initiating interest rate cuts soon.
In the commodities market, Brent crude oil rose by 2.0% to $80.01 a barrel, and gold increased by 0.9% to $2,376.06. In response to these positive movements, the US-listed share prices of mining giants BHP (ASX:BHP) and Rio Tinto (ASX:RIO) also climbed.
In China, shares closed lower, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index falling by 0.5%. Market focus is now on China's trade data for May, due Friday, for clues on the strength of the domestic economy. On the other hand, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index closed 0.3% higher, led by tech and manufacturing stocks.
In Europe, the FTSE 100 Index gained 0.5%, with the STOXX Europe 600 Index adding 0.7%, Germany's DAX rising 0.4%, and France's CAC 40 also up by 0.4%.