Asia shares trade mixed as China benchmarks surge while others slip

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were mixed Friday after a sharp slide for Walmart helped pull Wall Street off record highs. In Japan, where investors were watching currency swings, the benchmark Nikkei 225 edged up 0.1% in morning trading to 38,719.34. A weak yen is a boon for some export-reliant manufacturers in Japan. In currency trading, the U.S. dollar rose to 150.42 Japanese yen from 149.53 yen. The euro cost $1.0502, little changed from $1.0500. Japan’s government released the nationwide core consumer price index, excluding volatile fresh food prices, which rose 3.2% in January from the same month last year….