Asian shares mixed after a rebound on Wall Street

Shares were mostly higher in Asia on Friday after several strong profit reports helped Wall Street claw back most of its sharp losses from day before. Benchmarks fell in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney and Bangkok but rose in Tokyo and Mumbai. U.S. futures fell while oil prices advanced. Japan's core inflation rate fell to 2.5% in November from 2.9% a month earlier as energy costs eased, the government reported. The decline, if it augurs further weakening of prices, might counter expectations that the central bank will tighten its lax monetary policy in coming months. Bank of Japan officials have indicated they want to ensure inflation…