(BSS/AFP) - Asian markets gained on Friday, bucking retreats on Wall Street as the dollar advanced and markets reopened following the New Year`s holiday.

Hong Kong, Sydney and Taipei stocks climbed, while South Korea`s Kospi Index surged nearly two percent higher despite the ongoing political uncertainty in Asia`s fourth-largest economy.

South Korean investigators attempted to arrest impeached President Yoon Suk
Yeol at his residence Friday morning over his failed martial law bid, but
security forces were reportedly blocking their efforts.

After the New Year`s Day break, US stocks opened higher on Thursday but
tumbled into the red mid-session before concluding the day modestly lower.

The Wall Street losses were driven in part by disappointing results from
Tesla, which slumped 6.1 percent after fourth-quarter auto sales lagged
expectations.

The dollar index on Thursday hit its highest level against other currencies
since November 2022, reflecting expectations that the US economy will outpace
others.

"There`s still no flagging of the US dollar`s vigour, despite US equities
struggling on the first trading day of the year," Alvin Tan, head of Asia FX
strategy at RBC Capital Markets, said in a note on Friday.

"The very negative performance of China equities (Thursday) provides a better
indication of the weakening sentiment around China assets at the start of
2025, and ahead of Trump`s return to the White House," Tan added.

After slumping more than two percent on Thursday, Shanghai stocks were still
down in Friday morning trade, while Hong Kong was up, reversing the previous
day`s trend.

Tokyo remains closed until Monday.

Investors are gearing up for big changes in the coming weeks, especially with
the January 20 inauguration of Donald Trump, who has threatened deep tariffs,
especially on China, that could rattle international trade.

Trump`s "policies especially on tariffs are inflationary in their very
nature", Jung In Yun, CEO of Fibonacci Asset Management Global, said on
Bloomberg Television.

"Inflation being very sticky and refusing to come down means we could have
the current state of mid-level interest rates for a prolonged period of
time."

US jobless claims released Thursday fell more than expected, highlighting a
robust labor market, and leaving the Federal Reserve with less reason to
support fresh rate cuts.

Other significant economic releases ahead include data on inflation and
retail sales during the holiday shopping season.

- Key figures around 0220 GMT -

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: closed

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 0.4 percent at 19,705.29

Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 3,240.03

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0268 from $1.0269 on Thursday

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.2388 from $1.2382

Dollar/yen: DOWN at 157.32 yen from 157.52 yen

Euro/pound: DOWN at 82.89 pence from 82.92 pence

Brent North Sea Crude: UP 0.2 percent at $76.09 per barrel

West Texas Intermediate: UP 0.3 percent at $73.32 per barrel

New York - Dow: DOWN 0.4 percent at 42,392.27 (close)