The U.S. dollar slipped lower Friday, handing back some of the previous session’s gains on the back of strong retail sales, but remained on track for its third weekly gain in a row.

The price of gold is seen driving higher over the next 6 to 12 months thanks to declining interest rates and "strong" central bank purchases of the yellow metal, according to analysts at UBS.

Japan stocks were higher after the close on Friday, as gains in the Power, Banking and Rubber sectors led shares higher.

Most Asian currencies kept to a tight range on Friday as the dollar steadied at more than two-month highs as strong economic data furthered expectations of smaller interest rate cuts.

One of Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN)'s top executives defended the new, controversial 5-day-per-week in-office policy on Thursday, saying those who do not support it can leave for another company. Speaking at an all-hands meeting for AWS, unit CEO Matt Garman said nine out of 10 workers he has spoken

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is yet to receive approval from the Chinese government to launch its full self-driving functions in the country, the China Daily reported on Friday, with the company reportedly seeking permission to gather more data.