(Adds close of European markets)
* U.S.-Sino trade deal unlikely before 2020 U.S. election
* Yen rises to 1 1/2 year high vs dollar
* Gold remains above $1,500 an ounce
* U.S., European equity markets falter, China's gains
* Argentine peso plunges after primary elections
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Reuters) - Investors piled into gold, safe-haven yen and bonds on Monday over nagging concerns about a prolonged U.S.-China trade war and global growth, while Argentina's peso plunged 22% after voters handed its president an election mauling.
The yen rose to its highest in more than a year and a half versus the dollar on the prospect the Japanese currency could gain more in the case of a drawn-out U.S.-Sino trade conflict.
Concerns that a trade deal would not be reached before the 2020 U.S. presidential election grew after Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) on Sunday became the latest to cut its U.S. growth outlook and warn a trade stand-off would fester past the election. stocks fell, following a decline in Europe, to push a gauge of global equity performance lower. Stocks in China rallied .CSI300 more than 1% after the yuan avoided further drama CNY=PBOC after Chinese authorities allowed the yuan to slip below the seven-per-dollar level last week.
Stocks in the near term lack a catalyst either from company earnings, the Federal Reserve or a trade deal, said Rahul Shah, chief executive of Ideal Asset Management in New York.
"The promise of a trade deal coming this year, I think that's becoming less and less likely," Shah said. "That does set up the market possibly for a correction at this point," he said.
Stocks could dip between 5% to 10% but prompt long-term investors to enter the market as valuations fall, he said. Half of Shah's portfolio is corporate debt with remainder tech stocks and shares with solid dividends, he said.
MSCI's gauge of stock performance in 47 countries .MIWD00000PUS fell 0.6% while Wall Street also fell.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average .DJI slid 265.06 points, or 1.01%, to 26,022.38. The S&P 500 .SPX lost 23.37 points, or 0.80%, to 2,895.28 and the Nasdaq Composite .IXIC dropped 52.26 points, or 0.66%, to 7,906.88.
European shares also fell, with the pan-regional FTSEurofirst 300 .FTEU3 of leading European shares closing down 0.31%, while Germany's export-heavy DAX .GDAXI off 0.12%.
Germany's Ifo survey echoed the growth concerns with its measures for current conditions and economic expectations both having worsened in the third quarter. edged up, holding above the psychological $1,500 level. Spot gold XAU= added 0.6% to $1,505.83 an ounce. yen JPY= rose to its highest against the dollar since March 2018 - barring a flash crash in January - gaining 0.32% versus the greenback at 105.35 per dollar. euro EUR= rose 0.12% to $1.1211, while the dollar index .DXY fell 0.05%.
"The longer the trade war drags on, the more likely it would weigh (on) the global outlook and crimp the world economy, a negative for market morale," said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions.
U.S. Treasury yields dropped across the board as trade worries and political tensions around the world in places such as Hong Kong and Argentina supported safe-haven assets. long-term yields have fallen in six of the past nine sessions, reflecting investors' diminished risk appetite. Bond yields in Europe also were lower on the day.
Benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury notes US10YT=RR rose 26/32 in price to push their yield lower at 1.6454%.
The Argentine peso ARS= collapsed, falling to 55.2545 to the dollar, after voters snubbed market-friendly President Mauricio Macri by giving the opposition a greater-than-expected victory in Sunday's primary election. Merval stock index .MERV fell 30% and declines of between 18-20 cents in Argentina's benchmark 10-year bonds left them trading at around 60 cents on the dollar or even lower.
The victory by Alberto Fernandez - whose running mate is former Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner - "paves the way for the return to left-wing populism that many investors fear," consultancy Capital Economics told clients.
Oil prices rose despite worries about a global economic slowdown and the ongoing U.S.-China trade war, which has reduced demand for commodities such as crude. benchmark Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 8 cents to $58.61 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 futures gained 14 cents to $54.64 a barrel.
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Rising gold prices
https://tmsnrt.rs/2YD8nsu GRAPHIC-Global assets in 2019
http://tmsnrt.rs/2jvdmXl GRAPHIC-World FX rates in 2019
http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh GRAPHIC-MSCI All Country World Index Market Cap
http://tmsnrt.rs/2EmTD6j GRAPHIC-China trade shock interactive
https://tmsnrt.rs/2SRopIf Asia stock markets
https://tmsnrt.rs/2zpUAr4 Asia-Pacific valuations
https://tmsnrt.rs/2Dr2BQA
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