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 0.3% in afternoon trading to 38,

U.S. stocks are on pace for a modest weekly gain, but have lagged their global peers since the start of the year.

US stocks fell the most in two months as a bout of gloomy economic data showed sentiment among consumers and businesses has cooled a month into Donald Trump’s presidency. The S&P 500 fell 1.7 per cent on Friday,