Japan inflation data, rate decision

Asia-Pacific markets climbed Friday, after the S&P 500 hit record highs overnight as U.S. President Donald Trump called for lower interest rates and cheaper oil prices.

The Bank of Japan raised policy rate by 25 basis points to 0.5% — the highest since 2008 and in line with economists’ expectations. Following the decision, the Japanese yen weakened marginally to trade at 155.18 against the dollar.

Earlier on Friday, Japan reported its core inflation rate rose to a 16-month high of 3% in December, year on year.

The country’s Nikkei 225 and Topix erased earlier gains to close flat at 39,931.98 and 2,751.04, respectively.

South Korea’s Kospi advanced 0.85% to end the day at 2,536.80, while the Kosdaq rose 0.65% to close at 728.74.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose for a third straight week. The index ended the day up 0.36% at 8,408.9.

Mainland China’s CS1300 benchmark rose 0.77% to end the day at 3,832.86. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index was up 1.67% as of its last hour of trade.

On Friday, Singapore’s central bank eased its monetary policy in line with market expectations, given the rise in core inflation levels in December.

The city-state also reported that its factory output expanded 10.6% year on year, surpassing the 6.4% predicted by economists polled by Reuters.

Output rose for a sixth straight month in December, led by the transport engineering, electronics and biomedical manufacturing sectors, data released by Singapore’s Economic Development Board showed.

Overnight in the U.S., the S&P 500 added 0.53%, notching an all-time intraday high for the second straight session to finish the day at 6,118.71.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced 408.34 points, or 0.92%, to 44,565.07, while the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.22% to 20,053.68. Thursday marked the fourth straight winning session for all three major indexes.

— CNBC’s Alex Harring and Jesse Pound contributed to this report.