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Japan's Nikkei average jumped 2.2% on Friday, moving away from a four-month low hit earlier this week, as investor sentiment brightened on hopes for an upbeat US jobs report later in the day.
The Nikkei ended at 14,462.41, recovering from a four-month trough of 13,995.86 set on Wednesday. It was the biggest daily percentage rise since January 29.
For the week, however, the Nikkei dropped 3%, its fifth consecutive week of declines.
The Topix added 2.3% on the day to 1,189.14.
The JPX-Nikkei Index 400, an index launched this year comprised of firms with high return on equity and strong corporate governance, rose 2.2% to 10,737.56.
The US nonfarm payrolls report is expected to show that employers added 185,000 jobs in January, according to the median estimate of economists polled by Reuters.
