Investing.com - Asian shares were mixed on Friday ahead of a long-holiday weekend in the U.S. with comments from Fed Chair Janet Yellen later in the day eagerly awaited.
The S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.62%, while the Nikkei 225 gained 0.45%.
The Shanghai Composite fell 0.30%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index was last down 0.34%.
Overnight, U.S. stocks were mixed on Thursday, losing momentum from the strongest two day rally since late-March, as investors traded cautiously ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen and oil pared gains after hitting $50 a barrel for the first time this year.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 23.22 or 0.13% to 17,828.29, while the S&P 500 fell 0.44 or 0.02% to 2,090.10 as the major indices remained flat for the month of May.
The NASDAQ Composite index, meanwhile, inched up 6.88 or 0.14% to 4,901.77, amid strong performances from Yahoo! Inc (NASDAQ:YHOO) and Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX).
On the S&P 500, five of 10 sectors closed in the red as stocks in the Basic Materials, Energy and Financials industries lagged. Stocks in the Utilities and Telecommunications sector led, each gaining more than 0.2%.