Oil prices fell on Friday as a strong dollar, mixed economic signals and concern over China's economy weighed on investor sentiment.

The dollar was steady and poised to snap a two-week losing run on Friday as U.S. labour and manufacturing data kept traders pondering on when and by how much the Federal Reserve would cut rates this year.

Asian equities slid on Thursday, led by chip stocks as investors fret over the prospect of escalating trade tensions between the U.S. and China, while the yen was firm after scaling a six-week high following suspected interventions by Tokyo.

Oil prices extended gains from the previous session on Thursday, buoyed by a bigger-than-expected decline last week in crude stockpiles in the United States, the world's largest oil consumer.

Japan's yen scaled a six-week high on Thursday, spurring speculation of an official push, while the dollar nursed broad losses as markets prepared for U.S. rate cuts in a few months and waited on a central bank meeting in Europe later in the day.

Most Asian stocks fell on Wednesday, with losses concentrated around Taiwan and China after U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump said that Taiwan should pay the U.S. for defense.