Unrest hits Hong Kong as Asian markets down on trade

Asian markets turned lower on Monday as another record close on Wall Street was overshadowed by uncertainty on the China-US trade talks, while Hong Kong was also hit by fresh protests in which at least one person was shot.

Expectations Beijing and Washington will agree a mini-pact have fuelled an equity rally for the past few weeks.

Hopes had been given an added boost Thursday after China said the two sides had agreed to roll back some tariffs as the negotiations progress.

But the US side sent out some confusing signals after that announcement, before US President Donald Trump denied such an agreement, leaving investors scratching their heads.

Still, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro provided a lift to sentiment, saying Trump could postpone tariffs on Chinese goods scheduled to take effect in December. The S&P 500 and Dow both ended at fresh all-time highs.

"President Trump's speech on Tuesday at the New York Economic Club offers the perfect soapbox for (him) to make a big political splash on both the US-China trade talks and section 232 auto investigation against the EU," said AxiTrader's Stephen Innes.

"The president has never been known to shy away from the spotlight, so keep eyes trained on this significant event."

Asian investors were unable to extend the winning streak.

Tokyo ended 0.3 percent lower and Singapore shed more than one percent with Seoul, Mumbai, Taipei, Jakarta and Manila also sharply lower. Sydney and Wellington edged up.

Protester shot

Shanghai dropped 1.8 percent, with traders keeping tabs on China's annual "Singles' Day" shopping frenzy -- the world's biggest 24-hour shopping event -- which acts as a gauge of the country's consumer spending.

Total gross merchandise volume settled through Alibaba's payments platform Alipay hit 192 billion yuan (27.4 billion USD) in the first 12 hours, the e-commerce titan said.

This put it on course to break last year's record of 30.7 billion USD. The firm said the first 1 billion USD was spent in just 68 seconds.

Hong Kong sank 2.6 percent as the city was gripped by another wave of protests that have jammed up the transport network and led to the closure of several businesses.

At least one person was hurt after a police officer fired shots at demonstrators, as the unrest -- which for five months has battered the city's image and dragged on the economy -- shows no sign of letting up.

Tensions have soared in recent days following the death on Friday of a 22-year-old student who succumbed to injuries sustained from a fall in the vicinity of a police clearance operation a week earlier.

In early trade London and Frankfurt each fell 0.5 percent, while Paris was off 0.3 percent.

On currency markets the pound edged up but struggled to recover losses suffered Friday that came in reaction to news that Moody's had downgraded the outlook for Britain's debt, citing mounting policy challenges as the Brexit saga rumbles along.

Key figures around 0820 GMT

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.3 percent at 23,331.84 (close)
Hong Kong - Hang Seng: DOWN 2.6 percent at 26,926.55 (close)
Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 1.8 percent at 2,909.97 (close)
London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.5 percent at 7,322.66
Euro/dollar: UP at 1.1029 USD from 1.1021 USD at 2140 GMT
Dollar/yen: DOWN at 108.97 yen from 109.21 yen
Pound/dollar: UP at 1.2802 from 1.2784 USD
Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.13 pence from 86.18
West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 60 cents at 56.64 USD per barrel
Brent North Sea crude: DOWN 62 cents at 61.89 USD per barrel
New York - Dow: FLAT at 27,681.24 (close)(AFP)