* Asian stock markets: https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4
* Chinese Oct economic indicators miss forecasts
* Hopes for resolution to U.S.-China trade war fade
* Asian stocks drop, Hong Kong falls most
By Stanley White and Tom Westbrook
TOKYO/SINGAPORE, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Asian stocks fell on
Thursday after soft economic data in China and Japan showed the
trade war between Beijing and Washington hitting growth in some
of the world's biggest economies.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan
.MIAPJ0000PUS fell 0.3%. Japan's Nikkei stock index .N225
fell further, dropping 0.8%.
Australia's S&P/ASX200 .AXJO wiped earlier gains to close
0.5% higher, while Shanghai blue chips .CSI300 trod water,
supported by expectations the gloomy figures would add to the
case for stimulus.
European stock futures STXEc1 point to a flat open after
recent rises. U.S. futures ESc1 were down 0.1%, following a
record-high close on the S&P 500 .SPX on Wednesday.
China's industrial production growth slowed sharply in
October, with the 4.7% year-on-year rise well below forecasts
for 5.4%. Investment growth hit a record low and retail sales
also missed expectations. "The weakness in investment and production would suggest
that confidence is down," said Shane Oliver, chief economist at
AMP Capital in Sydney.
"It puts more pressure on Chinese authorities to come to a
deal with Donald Trump on trade, just as President Trump's
desire to be re-elected puts pressure on him to come to a deal."
The weak figures also come as market confidence toward a
resolution weakens, with a new Reuters poll showing most
economists do not expect Washington and Beijing to strike a
permanent truce over the coming year. Trump offered no update on the progress of negotiations in a
policy speech on Tuesday. The Wall Street Journal reported on
Wednesday that talks had snagged on farm purchases. Meanwhile, the global fallout from the dispute is widening.
Data due at 0700 GMT will reveal whether Germany has entered
a technical recession, as forecast.
Japan's economic growth hit its slowest pace in a year in
the third quarter as soft demand knocked exports. around the region, you've had some near misses of
recession - Korea's been one, Singapore's also been one and
you've got Hong Kong in a recession at the moment," said Sean
Darby, global equity strategist at Jefferies in Hong Kong.
"So it's not great. It's not a cycle that is not leaving any
scars," he said.
Worries about spiralling violence as anti-government
protests intensify in Hong Kong have also soured investor
sentiment.
Protesters paralysed parts of Hong Kong for a fourth day on
Thursday, forcing school closures and blocking highways and
other transport links in a marked escalation of unrest in the
financial hub. Hong Kong's Hang Seng .HSI fell 0.8% on Thursday to a
fresh one-month low.
In currency markets, safe havens such as the Japanese yen
and Swiss franc held on to gains.
The yen JPY=EBS was quoted at 108.70 per dollar, close to
a one-week high. The Swiss franc CHF=EBS traded at 0.9900
versus the greenback, near the highest in more than a week.
The Australian dollar skidded to a one-month low on Thursday
after a worryingly weak reading on employment re-ignited
speculation about another cut in interest rates. Brent crude LCOc1 futures rose 0.6% to $62.76 a barrel
while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 gained
0.63% to $57.48 per barrel. The yield on benchmark 10-year Treasury notes US10YT=RR
rose to 1.8652% compared with its U.S. close of 1.869% on
Wednesday.
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Trade war toll https://tmsnrt.rs/2XcxMFv
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(Editing by Sam Holmes)