Envirotech Vehicles appoints Jason Maddox to board of directors
* Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Trump offers no new details on U.S.-China trade pact
* Trade war has taken toll on major economies
* Commodities highlight concern about global demand
By Stanley White
TOKYO, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Asian stocks and Wall Street
futures fell on Wednesday, as growing worries that U.S.-China
trade talks are stalling and concern about intensifying unrest
in Hong Kong hurt demand for risky assets.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS fell 1.01% to the lowest in more than a week.
Hong Kong shares .HSI slumped 1.8% to a two-week low, battered
by fears that anti-government protests appear to be spiralling
out of control.
The dollar drifted in Asia after U.S. President Donald Trump
said a trade deal was "close" but gave no new details on when or
where an agreement would be signed, disappointing investors in
what was billed as a major speech on his administration's
economic policies.
Trump also rattled some investors by threatening China with
even more tariffs if they do not sign a deal.
Oil prices fell as diminishing prospects for an immediate
resolution to a 16-month long trade war between the world's
two-largest economies suggested less demand for energy in the
future.
Expectations for a "phase one" trade deal some time this
month have been a key factor supporting stocks and riskier
assets recently. However, the lack of material progress on an
agreement has only increased doubts about whether a trade deal
will take place at all.
"I'm absolutely concerned. The clock is ticking," said
Michael McCarthy, chief market strategist at CMC Markets in
Sydney.
"Markets are now expecting substantial progress in the next
week or so, and if not, then confidence could crumble. There are
diverging interpretations of Trump's comments. I tend to go with
commodities like oil and copper because they are plugged in to
global demand, so their fall is significant."
U.S. stock futures ESc1 fell 0.27% in Asia after the S&P
500 .SPX eked out a 0.16% gain on Tuesday. The S&P 500 and
Nasdaq hit all-time peaks during trading on Tuesday but stocks
ended off session highs after Trump's speech.
Washington and Beijing have imposed tariffs on each other's
goods in a bitter dispute over Chinese trade practices that the
Trump administration says are unfair.
The standoff has roiled global financial markets and raised
the risk of recession for some economies as global trade slows.
In recent weeks, both sides have indicated they were making
progress toward an agreement that would potentially scale back
some tariffs, but a lack of additional information is starting
to unsettle some investors in equities and other riskier assets.
In a reminder of the potential for further friction, Trump
said on Tuesday he would raise tariffs on Chinese goods "very
substantially" if China does not agree a deal. "And that's going
to be true for other countries that mistreat us too," he added.
Hong Kong stocks .HSI slumped as protesters planned to
paralyse parts of the Asian financial hub for a third day, with
transport, schools and many businesses closing after violence
escalated across the city. Protesters and police battled through the night at
university campuses and other locations only hours after police
Senior Superintendent Kwong Wing-cheung said the Chinese-ruled
city had been pushed to the "brink of a total breakdown".
The former British colony has been rocked by nearly five
months of protest against Chinese rule, and there is growing
concern that the chances of a crackdown by Beijing are rising.
Chinese shares .CSI300 fell 0.4%, while Japanese shares
.N225 skidded 1.02%.
In currencies, the dollar was just a shade lower at 108.99
yen JPY=EBS , pulling away slightly from a five-month high
reached no Nov. 7.
The New Zealand dollar NZD=D3 surged by more than 1% to
$0.6410 after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand unexpectedly left
interest rates on hold at 1%. The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes US10YT=RR
rose slightly to 1.9225% but is likely to move in a narrow range
before data due later Wednesday that is forecast to show U.S.
consumer prices accelerated slightly in October.
U.S. crude CLc1 dipped 0.25% to $56.66 a barrel on worries
about weakening demand for oil.
(Editing by Sam Holmes and Jacqueline Wong)