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• Asian shares inched closer to a record high on Friday as U.S. jobs data pointed to firm economic growth although the greenback was soft as the specter of benign inflation capped domestic bond yields.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS rose nearly 0.4 percent to 585.0, about one percent shy of its all-time peak of 591.5 hit in November 2007, led by gains in Australia and South Korea .KS11.

• Japan’s Nikkei share average extended the previous session’s gains on Friday, probing 26-year highs as banking and brokerage firms rose, while Toshiba stocks strengthened on news of a buyer for its Westinghouse Electric unit.

The Nikkei was up 0.9 percent at 23,714.53, touching levels unseen since January 1992.

Shares of Toshiba Corp were up 2.2 percent. An affiliate of Canada’s Brookfield Asset Management said on Thursday it would acquire Westinghouse Electric Co LLC, the bankrupt nuclear services company owned by Toshiba, for $4.6 billion.

• China stocks rose on Friday, with both major benchmark indexes climbing for a sixth straight session, helped by gains for property developers.

China’s services sector activity expanded in December on solid growth in new business, with the outlook improving to a six-month high, a private sector survey showed on Thursday.

Another private business survey showed growth in China’s manufacturing sector unexpectedly rose to a four-month high in December thanks to a surge in new orders.

At the close, the Shanghai Composite index was up 6.65 points or 0.2 percent at 3,392.36, a six-week high.

Reference: Reuters, CNBC