Most of the Asian equity benchmarks are trading higher in the early deals on Friday, following the overnight gains on Wall Street, while higher commodity prices provided a boost to resource stocks. However, gains are modest in most markets amid concerns about the Greek debt crisis. The Japanese market rebounded as buyers took advantage of recent dips, but trade was cautious ahead of a Bank of Japan policy decision and its governor's comments after the meeting. Among the other Asian markets, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia are up with modest gains. Meanwhile, Shanghai is lower and the Taiwan market is closed on Friday for the Dragon Boat Festival.
Nikkei 225 surged 157.21 points or 0.79 % to 20,148.03, Hang Seng rose 289.39 points or 1.08 % to 26,984.05, Jakarta Composite added by 38.01 points or 0.77 % to 4,983.50, Straits Times increased 4.91 points or 0.15 % to 3,305.33, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI jumped 6.05 points or 0.35 % to 1,724.17 and KOSPI Index was up by 11.71 points or 0.57 % to 2,053.59.
On the flip side, Shanghai Composite was down by 98.04 points or 2.05 % to 4,687.32.