TOKYO: Asian stocks fell on Thursday as investors dialed back some of their recent optimism about a Sino-China trade deal while news that the U.S.-North Korean summit in Hanoi was ending early rattled confidence late in the trading day.
MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan lost 0.45 percent, extending earlier declines. U.S. issues with China are"too serious" to be resolved with promises from Beijing to purchase more U.S. goods and any deal between the two countries must include a way to ensure commitments are met, he told U.S. lawmakers.
The conflict between India and Pakistan heated up after both said on Wednesday that they shot down each other's fighter aircraft.Global equities scaled a four-month high earlier this week helped by upbeat expectations towards U.S.-China trade talks, before pulling back after Lighthizer spoke.