Most Asian markets up as oil drops, eyes on Taiwan and US jobs

HONG KONG (AFP): Asian equities mostly rose Friday (Aug 5) as a drop in oil prices to pre-Ukraine war levels stirred hopes of a slowdown in inflation and central bank interest rate hikes, while focus turns to key US jobs data later in the day.

However, while markets have enjoyed a broadly positive week, optimism remains at a premium as traders fret over issues including the conflict in Eastern Europe, China's military drills around Taiwan and a possible global recession.