China, HK stocks drop as fresh Sino-U.S. dispute dents sentiment

China and Hong Kong stocks on Thursday extended losses to a second session as a fresh dispute between Washington and Beijing over Hong Kong stoked concerns that an interim trade deal could slide into next year.

** The CSI300 index was down 0.6% at 3,885.32 points, while the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.4% to 2,899.56 points. ** The Hang Seng index dropped 1.6% to 26,456.23 points, while the Hong Kong China Enterprises Index lost 1.5% to 10,458.92 points.

** Completion of a "phase one" U.S.-China trade deal could be pushed into next year, trade experts and people close to the White House said, as Beijing presses for more extensive tariff rollbacks, and the Trump administration counters with heightened demands of its own. ** In a dinner speech in Beijing on Wednesday, Vice Premier Liu He said he was "cautiously optimistic" on a "phase one" deal, Bloomberg News said, citing people who attended the event ahead of a forum organized by Bloomberg LP.

** The crackdown on anti-government protests in Hong Kong may also complicate the completion of a deal. ** The Hong Kong issue is definitely a negative factor in the trade talks, Zhang Yansheng, principal researcher at the state-affiliated think-tank China Center for International Economic Exchanges, said at the Bloomberg forum on Thursday.

** The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed two bills to back protesters in Hong Kong and send a warning to China about human rights, with President Donald Trump expected to sign them into law, despite delicate trade talks with Beijing. ** Around the region, MSCI's Asia ex-Japan stock index was weaker by 1.12%, while Japan's Nikkei index was down 0.73%.

** The yuan was quoted at 7.0385 per U.S. dollar, 0.03% weaker than the previous close of 7.0364. ** So far this year, the Shanghai stock index advanced 16.73%, while China's H-share index rose 4.9%. Shanghai stocks declined 0.61% so far this month.

** As of 0414 GMT, China's A-shares were trading at a premium of 27.98% over the Hong Kong-listed H-shares.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)