SE Asia Stocks-Most fall on China growth fears, trade standoff

* Malaysia drops to lowest since May 31 * Singapore on track for fifth straight gain * Philippines closed for holiday By Shreya Mariam Job June 12 (Reuters) - Most Southeast Asian stock markets fell on Wednesday, with Malaysia leading declines, as escalating tensions on the U.S.-China trade front and concerns of slowing growth in China curbed risk sentiment. Broader Asian markets were also tepid with investor sentiment soured by deepening dents in the Sino-U.S. trade negotiations and China growth worries. MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was off 0.38% after two days of gains. "Expect investors to remain antsy with U.S. Commerce Secretary expecting no major breakthrough deals, while official rhetoric from China continues to harden," OCBC said in a note. China vowed a tough response if the United States insists on escalating trade tensions amid ongoing negotiations, after U.S. President Donald Trump said he was ready to impose another round of punitive tariffs on China. "Tariffs are a great negotiating tool," Trump tweeted On Tuesday. Meanwhile, China's factory gate inflation slowed in May amid sluggish commodity demand and faltering manufacturing activity , fuelling worries growth in the world's second-largest economy is slipping. Consumer prices, however, soared at their fastest pace in over a year. Malaysian stocks dropped as much as 0.5% to their lowest since May 31, dragged by telecom and utility shares. Maxis Bhd dropped 1.4%, while Tenaga Nasional Bhd slid 1.8%. Indonesian stocks dipped 0.3%, dragged by telecom stocks. Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk Pt, which trades ex-dividend from Wednesday, dipped 2.7%. Indonesia's central bank sees economic growth of 5.1-5.5% in 2020, while continuing to monitor global economic conditions to assess whether there is scope for an "accommodative monetary policy", Bank Indonesia governor Perry Warjiyo said on Tuesday. Thai shares dipped hurt by broad based losses. Bangkok Dusit Medical Services PCL and PTT PCL dropped 2.5% and 0.5%, respectively. Bucking the trend, Singapore stocks rose and were on track to post their fifth straight session of gains. DBS Group Holdings Ltd and Jardine Cycle & Carriage Ltd firmed 0.7% and 1.9%, respectively. Philippine market was closed for a holiday. For Asian Companies click; SOUTHEAST ASIAN STOCK MARKETS As at 0316 GMT Change on the day Market Current Previous close Pct Move Singapore 3215.52 3209.58 0.19 Bangkok 1666.47 1670.41 -0.24 Jakarta 6285.814 6305.992 -0.32 Kuala Lumpur 1642.98 1651.2 -0.50 Ho Chi Minh 959.04 962.07 -0.31 Change so far in 2019 Market Current End 2018 Pct Move Singapore 3215.52 3068.76 4.78 Bangkok 1666.47 1563.88 6.56 Jakarta 6285.814 6,194.50 1.47 Kuala Lumpur 1642.98 1690.58 -2.82 Ho Chi Minh 959.04 892.54 7.45 (Reporting by Shreya Mariam Job in Bengaluru; editing by Gopakumar Warrier)