Australia

Australian shares are expected to shine today following an uplifting end to the week on Wall Street. All three US indices closed higher on Friday, thanks to stronger-than-expected jobs data.

ASX futures had jumped 70 points or 1.0% as of 6:00am on Saturday, suggesting a strong open.

US stocks ended sharply higher Friday as employers added 253,000 jobs in April and the unemployment rate fell to 3.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained or 1.7%, the S&P 500 rose 1.9% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 2.3%.

Apple led the way, gaining 4.7%, after reporting better-than-expected earnings. Regional bank stocks clawed back some of this week's losses, with PacWest shares were up 88%, but still trading below Wednesday's closing level. Energy shares led S&P 500 sectors as oil prices rebounded on hopes for better demand.

In commodity markets, Brent crude oil advanced 3.9% to US$75.36 a barrel while gold dropped 1.6% to US$2,018.04.

Australian government bonds were mixed, with the 2 Year yield dipping to 3.07% and the 10 Year yield moving up to 3.32%. US Treasury notes advanced, with the 2 Year yield reaching 3.91% and the 10 Year yield increasing to 3.43%.

The Australian dollar climbed to 67.51 US cents from its previous close of 66.92. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which tracks the US dollar against 16 other currencies, edged down to 95.52.

Asia

Chinese shares ended lower as concerns resurfaced about the patchiness of the country's economic recovery. "The recovery remains highly uneven and the latest example is the Labor Day holiday boom vs. the miss in April manufacturing PMI," economists from Macquarie commented in a research note. Pharmaceutical companies and hardware makers were among the day's losers. Jiangsu Hengrui Medicine dropped 3.7% and Hangzhou HIK Vision lost 3.1%. Among the gainers were property and banking shares. China Vanke rose 3.95%, Poly Developments & Holdings added 3.95% and Agricultural Bank of China was up 1.1%. The Shanghai Composite Index ended 0.5% lower at 3334.50 and finished the week 0.3% higher. The Shenzhen Composite Index closed 0.8% lower and the ChiNext Price Index fell 1.3%.

Hong Kong shares ended higher with tech and property stocks driving the market. China's Caixin service sector data showed activity grew for a fourth consecutive month in April, offsetting some of the negative sentiment from soft manufacturing activity data last week. The Hang Seng Index ended 0.5% higher at 20049.31. The Hang Seng Tech Index increased 1.0% with Baidu rising 3.8% and Meituan gaining 2.7%. Developers also rose with China Oversea Land and Investment adding 3.3% and Longfor Group Holdings gaining 2.4%. Consumption stocks retreated, tracking their mainland peers lower. Chow Tai Fok Jewellery Group dropped 1.3% and Budweiser Brewing declined 0.7%. The Hang Seng Index finished the week 0.8% higher.

Japanese markets were closed Friday to celebrate Children’s Day.

India's benchmark Sensex index closed 1.1% lower at 61054.29, weighed by banking stocks. Worries over the US financial sector weighed on Asian market sentiment and sparked a selloff in bank shares in the region, Saxo Markets strategist Charu Chanana said in a research report. Among bank stocks, HDFC Bank fell 5.9% and IndusInd Bank closed 5.3% lower. Other decliners included Tata Steel, which shed 2.2%. Gainers included Titan Co., which added 2.4%.

Europe

European stocks rose Friday as Wall Street rallied following stronger-than-expected US nonfarm payrolls data. The pan-European Stoxx Europe 600 gained 1.1%, the German DAX advanced 1.4% and the French CAC 40 increased 1.3%.

US nonfarm payrolls gained 253,000 in April, above expectations of 180,000 in a WSJ survey of analysts. The unemployment rate fell to 3.4% in April from 3.5% in March, against an expected 3.6%. "Thirteen successive payrolls reports have come in better than expected, and markets are taking this report as a clear sign of US economic strength which will drive earnings higher, even with the potential for interest rate increases," IG analyst Chris Beauchamp wrote.

Meanwhile, in London, the FTSE 100 Index climbed 1.0% as gains for International Consolidated Airlines, oil and mining stocks offset losses for InterContinental Hotels. IAG ascended nearly 3% after the owner of British Airways and Iberia raised its 2023 guidance. BP and Shell also gained as Brent crude increased 1.5% to $73.60 a barrel. Miners BHP, Anglo American and Rio Tinto were also among the biggest risers. Still, InterContinental Hotels dropped 2.7% after the hotelier said chief executive Keith Barr was stepping down, pointed to ongoing economic uncertainty and said comparatives to 2022 would get tougher from the second quarter onward.

North America

US stocks ended sharply higher Friday as employers added 253,000 jobs in April and the unemployment rate fell to 3.4%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained or 1.7%, the S&P 500 rose 1.9% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq climbed 2.3%.

Apple led the way, gaining 4.7%, after reporting better-than-expected earnings. Regional bank stocks clawed back some of this week's losses, with PacWest shares were up 88%, but still trading below Wednesday's closing level. Energy shares led S&P 500 sectors as oil prices rebounded on hopes for better demand.

The US unemployment rate slipped to 3.4%, showing labor market resilience in the face of banking turmoil and higher interest rates. Many were expecting unemployment to inch higher to 3.6%.

The hot jobs report helped elevate the price of benchmark US crude oil, after a three-week selloff driven by a gloomy economic outlook.