Asian shares rose on Friday as investors embraced a global rally before crucial US jobs data, while bonds found some much needed relief after a top Federal Reserve official cooled rate hike fears and dragged the dollar lower.

The dollar's retreat turbocharged a rally ?in the yen, which has gained 2.6 per cent this week to trade at 155.7 a dollar, putting it ?within striking distance of the 155.2 level reached after joint intervention by Tokyo and Washington in late July.

In remarks for a Reuters NEXT Newsmaker event, ?Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller said that recent data suggested some signs of disinflation and that, if upcoming reports reinforced that trend, he would favour holding rates steady at this month's policy meeting.

In Asia, MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose 1 per cent, tracking broad gains on Wall Street, but that was not enough to offset earlier ?losses with the index still down 0.4 per cent for the week.

Japan's Nikkei gained 0.8 per cent but was down 2.7 per cent this week. Chinese blue-chips rallied 1 per cent and South Korea's KOSPI increased 1.1 per cent.

Both Wall Street futures and EURO STOXX 50 futures were flat as traders braced for the US payrolls report for August due later in the day. Forecasts are centred on a rise of 56,000 jobs after a shock fall of 23,000 the previous month. The unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 4.1 per cent.