 "Asia shares rise on upbeat US growth data")
Asian shares ticked higher on Friday as investors cheered upbeat US growth data, while the dollar held near four-week highs against the yen as markets awaited the outcome of the Bank of Japan's monetary policy meeting.
The BOJ is widely expected to maintain its massive asset buying programme and its upbeat forecast that inflation will hit its 2% target next year, suggesting no further stimulus is on the horizon. The policy decision is expected around 0230-0330 GMT.
But data released early on Friday showed Japan's annual core consumer inflation slowed for a second straight month in September, adding to evidence the BOJ is likely to miss its price goal.
Wall Street surged late in the session on Thursday, after data showed surprisingly strong third-quarter US economic growth as the trade gap narrowed. But domestic demand slipped, hinting at some loss of momentum.
The data came a day after the US Federal Reserve surprised markets with an optimistic assessment of the US economy when it announced the end of its monthly bond buying stimulus program.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan added 0.5%, on track for weekly and monthly gains of more than 2%, while Japan's Nikkei stock average rallied 1.7%.
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Japanese shares also got a lift from news that Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund is poised to approve on Friday allocation targets which aim to raise the portion of Japanese shares to 25% of its portfolio from the current target of 12%, two government sources said.
"It's a surprise. The consensus was that GPIF would go to 20% Japanese stocks. The impact of 25% will be strong, with a positive impact for stocks," said Masayuki Doshida, senior market analyst at Rakuten Securities in Tokyo.
But data released before the market showed Japan's jobless rate rose in September and the availability of jobs fell for the first time in more than three years, suggesting the labour market is starting to lose some momentum. Japanese household spending also fell more than expected in September.
Against the yen, the dollar bought 109.39, up about 0.2% on the day and not far from Thursday's four-week high of 109.47.
The euro edged down about 0.1% to $1.2598.
In commodities trading, spot gold edged down about 0.1% to $1,196.53 an ounce after plumbing a three-week low of $1,195.70 on Thursday.
Brent crude skidded about 0.3% to $85.95 a barrel. Ample supplies and a stronger dollar have pushed prices down more than 9% so far in October, and on track for their biggest weekly drop since May 2012.