Southeast Asian stocks closed higher on Friday, as investors braced for US jobs data due later in the day for cues on a possible interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve. Fed Chair Janet Yellen's speech on Monday would also indicate whether the central bank would raise rates at its policy-setting meeting on June 14-15.
"With the release of US jobs data few hours away, we now see a trend where investors turn hopeful ahead of any market-moving data," said Chung Chiang Shiao, an analyst with DBS Vickers Securities (Singapore). Markets expect US employment data due at 1230 GMT to show a non-farm payroll increase of about 164,000 and 0.2 percent rise in average wage earnings in May.
"We'd have to wait and watch until the release of the data to understand whether the current rise is sustainable. Although hopeful, investor sentiment will remain subdued until stocks re-open for trading on Monday," he said. Singapore's Straits Times Index notched a second straight session of gains, with oil and gas stocks leading the rise. Rig-builders Keppel Corp Ltd rose 1.5 percent, while Sembcorp Industries advanced 0.7 percent. The index added 0.2 percent this week in its fourth straight weekly gain.
Indonesian shares closed 0.4 percent higher, rising 0.8 percent this week. Malaysian stocks extended gains into a third straight session, after data released earlier in the day showed Malaysia's exports in April grew 1.6 percent from a year earlier on higher shipments of manufactured goods and palm oil. Thai shares rose for a second consecutive session to its highest since August 6, 2015, gaining 1.7 percent for the week. Philippine stocks recovered from the previous session's losses and posted a weekly gain of 1.4 percent. Bucking the trend, Vietnam shares closed 0.2 percent lower, but posted a weekly gain of 2.3 percent.