Job losses in the world's largest economy surged to 467,000 in June, pushing the unemployment rate to a fresh 26-year high of 9.5 percent.

The gloomier-than-expected report dampened hopes that the U.S. slump has hit bottom.

The news sent Tokyo 0.61 percent lower, Sydney 1.27 percent down and Singapore 0.91 percent.

Wall Street tumbled 2.63 percent.

However, the early losses in some markets gave way to bargain hunting, helping Hong Kong up 0.14 percent and Seoul 0.6 percent.

TOKYO: Down 0.61 percent. The Nikkei-225 fell 60.08 points to 9,816.07. "Overly optimistic views on the economy are disappearing," Mizuho Securities analyst Yutaka Miura told Dow Jones Newswires. But the sell-off was relatively limited, partly due to the absence of many foreign players with U.S. markets closed for the Independence Day holiday.

HONG KONG: Up 0.14 percent. The Hang Seng Index added 25.35 points to 18,203.40. "In spite of a trillion-dollar stimulus program, some people are saying that the economic situation in the U.S. is still not recovering," an analyst said.

SYDNEY: Down 1.27 percent. The S&P/ASX 200 dropped 49.1 points to 3,828.2.SHANGHAI: Up 0.92 percent. The Shanghai Composite Index, which covers A and B shares, was up 28.11 points to 3,088.37. The index was helped by news that Beijing will further limit large volume sales of state-owned shares, dealers said. The key index has gained 5.5 percent for the week and closed at more than a one-year high.

SEOUL: Up 0.6 percent. The KOSPI ended up 8.56 points at 1,420.04. The market opened weak because of the U.S. jobs data. But it soon started reducing losses as foreigners and domestic institutions picked up low-priced shares, analysts said. The market showed little response to North Korea firing short-range missiles Thursday.

SINGAPORE: Down 0.91 percent. The Straits Times Index dropped 21.07 points to 2,299.75.

KUALA LUMPUR: Down 0.6 percent. The Kuala Lumpur Composite Index fell 6.02 points to close at 1,072.69.

BANGKOK: Down 0.50 percent. The Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) composite index shed 2.94 points to close at 583.48.

JAKARTA: Up 0.46 percent. The Jakarta Composite Index gained 9.54 points to 2,075.30. Investors were boosted by a central bank interest rate cut of 25 basis points to 6.75 percent, dealers said.

MANILA: Down 0.27 percent. The composite index fell 6.70 points to 2,431.34.

WELLINGTON: Down 0.24 percent. The NZX-50 fell 6.68 points to close at 2,761.51.

MUMBAI: Up 1.74 percent. The 30-share Sensex jumped 254.56 points to 14,913.05.