Shares in Asia mixed with investors looking ahead to holidays

Shares in Asia were mixed with Tokyo down sharply and Shanghai narrowly up as markets head into a holiday-thinned week.The Nikkei 225 fell 1.75%, while the S&P/ASX 200 eased 0.27% and the Shanghai Composite edged up 0.39%.In the week ahead, trading volumes are expected to remain light due to the Christmas holiday and as many traders already closed books before the end of the year, reducing liquidity in the market and increasing the volatility.

The U.S. is to release key reports on gross domestic product, durable goods orders, home sales and jobless claims.Last week, U.S. stocks fell sharply for the second straight day as crude prices hit a fresh six-year low and the yen dragged down the dollar, after the Bank of Japan startled markets on Friday by unexpectedly expanding its easing program at a key policy meeting.The downturn in oil has weighed heavily on U.S. equities markets in recent sessions. On Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 367.39 or 2.10% to 17,128.45, while the S&P 500 Composite index fell 36.37 or 1.78% to 2,005.52, each suffering its worst two-day loss since late-August. The NASDAQ Composite index also dropped by 79.47 or 1.59% to 4,923.08, closing near session-lows.