Underlying sentiment was supported by a breakthrough in the U.S.-U.K. trade deal announced on Thursday and reports that the Trump administration is weighing plans to lower China tariffs to as low as 50 percent.

Treasuries were little changed after yields surged in the previous session. The dollar eyed a weekly rise as the U.S. trade deal with Britain fueled guarded optimism for progress in tariff talks with other countries.

Gold recovered some ground after two days of sharp losses. Crude prices extended gains after rising around 3 percent on Thursday on hopes for a breakthrough in upcoming talks between the United States and China, the world's two largest oil consumers.

China's Shanghai Composite index dropped 0.30 percent to 3,342 despite upbeat trade data, with April exports rising 8.1 percent in dollar terms compared with a year earlier and imports shrinking 0.2 percent.

China's exports grew more than expected in April despite the sharp contraction in shipments to the United States following the trade tariff hikes, while imports decreased at a meager pace, official data revealed on Friday.

Exports advanced 8.1 percent on a yearly basis in April, customs data showed. At the same time, imports fell only 0.2 percent from a year ago. As a result, the trade surplus decreased to $96.18 billion from $102.64 billion in the previous month.

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