Asian stock markets climb after US jobs report lifts Wall Street

TOKYO – TOKYO (AP) — Most Asian stock markets rose Friday after an encouraging U.S. jobs report helped Wall Street extend gains.

Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average inched up 0.01 percent to 9,536.24, and South Korea's Kospi added 0.4 percent to 1,705.12.

Benchmarks in Taiwan and New Zealand rose, while Australian shares posted mild losses.

In New York Thursday, stocks rose for a third straight day on the Labor Department's report of a larger than expected drop in the number of newly laid-off people seeking unemployment benefits.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 1.2 percent, to 10,138.99. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 0.9 percent, to 1,070.25, and the Nasdaq composite index finished up 0.7 percent at 2,175.40.