Asian markets trade higher in early deals on Friday

Asian equity benchmarks are trading up in the early deals on Friday, shrugging off the weak cues overnight from Wall Street and European markets amid persistent concerns over the outlook for US interest rates. Meanwhile, crude oil and gold prices rose in Asian trades, while the US dollar weakened against some Asian currencies. Japan's Nikkei share average rose despite investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of Group of Seven meetings, and prospects for a US interest rate hike as early as June curbed buyers' appetite.

Nikkei 225 added 70.54 points or 0.42% to 16,717.20, Hang Seng surged 237.21 points or 1.20% to 19,931.54, Straits Times gained 20.77 points or 0.76% to 2,760.88, FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI increased 1.09 points or 0.07% to 1,634.85, KOSPI Index jumped 1.30 points or 0.07% to 1,948.08, Taiwan Weighted rose 42.45 points or 0.52% to 8,138.43, Shanghai Composite spurt 2.82 points or 0.10% to 2,809.72, and Jakarta Composite was up by 4.68 points or 0.10% to 4,708.90.