NEW YORK, May 17 (Reuters) - A New York state appeals court on Thursday rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s bid to put on hold a defamation lawsuit by a former contestant on his reality TV show “The Apprentice”.

The state Appellate Division in Manhattan did not in a one-page order explain its reasons for denying Trump’s motion to stay the lawsuit by Summer Zervos, while he appeals a lower court ruling letting the case proceed. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)