On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 index finished Friday up 6.6% for its biggest weekly gain in 18 months after surging inflation declined in April. U.S. markets will be closed Monday for a holiday.
The Nikkei 225 in Tokyo surged 2.3% to 27,382.03 and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 1.9% to 21,093.21. The Kospi in South Korea advanced 1.2% to 2,668.31.India's Sensex opened up 2.1% at 56,025.84. New Zealand and Singapore gained while Indonesia retreated.Investors were relieved after Commerce Department data showed U.S. inflation, which has prompted the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates, decelerated to 6.3% over a year earlier in April, its first decline in 17 months.
The U.S. market has been in a slump for the past two months over fears about interest rate hikes that might slow economic activity, and the impact of Russia's war on Ukraine and a Chinese economic slowdown.