Asian stock markets finished choppily higher Friday, as traders watched for clues on US future markets, and favored tech issues.

Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Tokyo finished in the green, while other regional exchanges were uneven.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 opened lower but rose to the close, finishing up 0.7% as traders looked for values after recent declines. Traders also watched New York equity index futures, pointing to a higher pending Friday open on Wall Street.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 rose 263.07 to 37,053.10, as gaining issues outnumbered losers 152 to 71.

Leading the upside was electrical-equipment maker Fujikura, which was up 8.1%, while home-furnishings retailer Nitori declined 3.5%.

In economic news, yields on 10-year Japanese government bonds struck above 1.50%, the highest rate since the Global Financial Crisis of 2008.

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened evenly and gained in trading, finishing up 2.1% as traders waded back into the tech sector.

The broad gauge Hang Seng rose 497.33 to 23,959.98 as gaining issues outnumbered losers 65 to 18. The Hang Seng TECH Index gained 2.3% on the day, while the Mainland Properties Index rose 2.6%.

Leading the upside was Wuxi Biologics, gaining 14.4%, while conglomerate and port-operator CK Hutchinson declined 6.4%.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite rose 1.8% to 3,419.56.

On the other regional exchanges, the S. Korean KOSPI fell 0.3%; the Taiwan TWSE was steady; the Australian ASX 200 inclined 0.5%; the Singapore Straits Times Index was flat, and the Thai Set inclined 1.2%. In late trading in Mumbai, the Sensex was down 0.3%.