Asian shares rose on Friday, tracking global equities higher after upbeat US labour market data, while the dollar eased slightly on currency markets that were otherwise watching for the strength of signals coming from a Bank of Japan policy review.

In the share markets, investors turned attention toward regional corporate earnings to assess the outlook for growth.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was up 0.3 per cent after reaching a six-week high earlier, and was set for a weekly gain of 2.4 per cent for its best such showing in five months.