Asian Pacific markets opened higher on Friday, following overnight gains in United States benchmarks.
By 10:15 am AEDT (11:15 pm GMT) the ASX 200, Kospi 200, and Nikkei 225 added 0.4%, 0.9%, and 0.5%, respectively.
Among data releases, Japan's inflation rate climbed to near 2-year highs of 3.6% year-on-year in December, strengthening the case for a potential interest rate hike from the Bank of Japan (BOJ).
The inflation report precedes the BOJ's monetary policy meeting later today, where analysts anticipate the central bank could raise rates to their highest level in 17 years.
In the U.S., stocks rallied broadly on Thursday, as the Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 408 points, or 0.9%, to 44,565. The S&P 500 added 0.5% to 6,118, while the Nasdaq rose 0.2% to 20,053.
Among individual stocks, GE Aerospace surged 6.6% after reporting a surge in jet-engine orders to close the year.
In contrast, Electronic Arts plummeted 17% after lowering its full-year outlook.
Commodity markets showed mixed trends. Brent crude oil fell 1.5% to US$77.81 per barrel, while gold slipped 0.1% to $2,753.12 per ounce.
Chinese markets ended mixed, with the Shanghai Composite Index rising 0.5% to 3,230.16, and the CSI 300 up 0.2% to 3.803.7.
Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.4% to 19,700.6, while India's BSE SENSEX rose 0.2% to 76,520.4.
European markets also closed higher. The UK's FTSE 100 Index increased 0.2% to 8,565.2. Germany's DAX gained 0.7% to 21,411.5, and France's CAC 40 rose 0.7% to 7,892.6.
