Hong Kong stocks slip most in over 3 months on protests, trade uncertainty

Hong Kong stocks fell on Monday, posting their biggest single-day drop in more than three months, amid worries over the latest development of month-long protests and renewed uncertainty around a potential Sino-U.S. trade deal.

** The Hang Seng index fell 2.6% to 26,926.55, while the China Enterprises Index lost 2.5% to 10,613.63 points, both posting their worst session since Aug 5. ** Hong Kong police shot and wounded one protester, who hospital officials said was in critical condition on Monday, as the Chinese-ruled territory spiralled into rare working-hours violence in its 24th straight week of pro-democracy unrest.

** U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that trade talks with China were moving along "very nicely," but the United States would only make a deal with Beijing if it was the right deal for America. ** That came after his comments on Friday that he has not agreed to rollbacks of U.S. tariffs sought by China.

** Adding to the pressure was the latest economic data from the mainland showing increasing inflation pressure which analysts believe could hinder Beijing's monetary policy easing to support the economy. ** China's producer prices fell the most in more than three years in October, while consumer prices rose at their fastest pace in almost eight years.

** "That's the worst combination, with strong CPI and weak PPI," said Alex Wong, an analyst with Ample Finance Group. ** Hong Kong stocks were also pressured by worries over the political unrest on the island city, and the uncertainties around the Sino-U.S. trade talks, Wong said.

** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 1.2%, while Japan's Nikkei index closed down 0.26%. ** The yuan was quoted at 7.0074 per U.S. dollar at 0815 GMT, 0.17% weaker than the previous close of 6.9954.

** At close, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 28.60% over Hong Kong-listed H-shares.