Asian stocks ease as dollar firms ahead of U.S. jobs report and tariff ruling.

Asian markets drifted lower while the dollar strengthened as investors awaited the U.S. December jobs report and a U.S. Supreme Court decision on the legality of President Trump's global tariffs.

Asian shares traded with a cautious tone as markets awaited two major U.S. events. The U.S. dollar firmed and benchmark Treasury yields were under watch. A U.S. Supreme Court ruling on President Trump's global tariffs and the December nonfarm payrolls report were the primary focus. Geopolitical developments also supported oil and defence-related stocks. Key points: - MSCI's Asia-Pacific index outside Japan slipped about 0.3%, while Japan's Nikkei was up roughly 0.8% in early trading. - The U.S. dollar strengthened and the 10-year Treasury yield was around 4.169% as markets awaited December nonfarm payrolls, which Reuters' survey estimated at about a 60,000 increase. - A U.S. Supreme Court decision on the legality of President Trump's global tariffs was expected and identified by analysts as a potential market mover. - Oil prices rose, with Brent near $62.36 and U.S. WTI near $58.04, and aerospace and defence shares reached record or high levels amid heightened geopolitical concerns. Summary: Markets adopted a cautious stance ahead of Friday's U.S. jobs report and a pending Supreme Court ruling on tariffs. These events were expected to influence yields, currency moves and market volatility, and market direction was undetermined at this time.