-- Japanese equities opened marginally higher on Friday morning. The Nikkei 225 barely moved in positive territory to open at 59,379.12.
Tokyo's core inflation unexpectedly slowed to its smallest gain in four years, with the CPI excluding fresh food rising 1.5% in April, below the Bank of Japan's target.
The yen strengthened notably after authorities intervened in the foreign-exchange market just hours after issuing a "final" warning to bearish traders, Bloomberg News reported Friday.
However, Nikkei Asia, citing an unnamed government official, reported that Japan had intervened by buying the yen and selling the dollar.