BANGKOK (AP) — Asian stock markets were mostly lower Friday ahead of a U.S. jobs report that is a key gauge of how robust the world’s No. 1 economy is.
Benchmark oil was nearly unchanged at $96 per barrel while the dollar rose against the euro and the yen.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 0.5 percent to 8,829.69. South Korea’s Kospi dropped 1 percent to 1,964.78 and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng lost 0.1 percent to 20,719.23.
Australia’s SP/ASX 200 lost 0.4 percent at 4,249.40. Benchmarks in India, Thailand and New Zealand fell while Taiwan, Singapore and Indonesia rose.
Later Friday, the U.S. government releases its report on January job creation and the unemployment rate. In December, the country added 200,000 jobs, and the jobless rate was 8.5 percent.
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