*
Thai baht weakens as much as 0.9%
*
Equities mixed; Philippine stocks rise 0.8%
*
Minutes of Fed's last policy meeting due on Wednesday
By Himanshi Akhand Feb 21 (Reuters) - Thailand's baht led emerging Asian currencies lower on Tuesday, as investors awaited the minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's latest meeting for further policy clues. The baht weakened as much as 0.9%, after appreciating 0.6% in the previous session. The U.S. dollar index, which climbed three weeks in a row for a gain of about 1.7% through February so far, was steady below recent peaks on Tuesday. The South Korean won and the Singaporean dollar fell 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively. "This is cautious consolidation, not bona fide calm. And justifiably so ahead of tomorrow's FOMC minutes, where risks of hawkish jolts, while diminished, are not dead," Vishnu Varathan, head, economics & strategy at Mizuho Bank, wrote in a note. The Indonesian rupiah declined 0.2%. The country expects to achieve a lower fiscal deficit next year, while economic growth is predicted to accelerate, senior officials said on Monday. Equities in the region struggled for direction. Manila advanced 0.8%, Singapore and Bangkok retreated 0.1%. Stocks in Shanghai edged up 0.4%, after rallying over 2% a day earlier. Varathan suggested that EM Asia's risks from Ukraine were far more pervasive than just inflation and that the overall geo-political risk premium may not be sufficiently priced in.
"Notably, spillover risks from US-China tensions are
amplified, especially as the U.S. makes a case for Beijing's
complicity in providing Russia with the ability to circumvent
sanctions," he wrote.
Investors are also looking to European and U.S.
manufacturing data due later in the day and Friday's core PCE
price index to guide their next steps.
"The semiconductor industry is entering into a bit of a
cyclical downturn, so we could see currencies like the Korean
won softening a little bit in response to weaker demand," Chang
Wei Liang, FX and credit strategist at DBS Bank, said.
HIGHLIGHTS
** The Bank of Korea will hold its base interest rate at
3.50% on Thursday and for the rest of this year, a Reuters poll
found
** Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he would decide
later on Tuesday or Wednesday the candidates he intended to
nominate to parliament to be the governor of the central bank
after the current chief's term ends in May
** Taiwan's export orders in January contracted from a year
earlier for a fifth month in a row, though at a slower pace, hit
by a continued slump in Chinese demand and weaker global
consumer spending
Asia stock indexes and currencies
at 0707 GMT
COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCKS STOCKS
DAILY % YTD % X DAILY YTD %
%
Japan -0.25 -2.57 <.N2 -0.21 5.28
25>
China <CNY=CFXS -0.20 +0.43 <.SS 0.41 6.95
> EC>
India -0.05 -0.05 <.NS -0.01 -1.45
EI>
Indonesi -0.18 +2.52 <.JK -0.07 0.58
a SE>
Malaysia -0.02 -0.65 <.KL 0.06 -1.41
SE>
Philippi +0.05 +1.35 <.PS 0.84 3.57
nes I>
S.Korea <KRW=KFTC -0.11 -2.42 <.KS 0.16 9.95
> 11>
Singapor -0.19 +0.13 <.ST -0.13 1.63
e I>
Taiwan -0.14 +0.97 <.TW 0.08 10.08
II>
Thailand -0.76 -0.17 <.SE -0.13 -0.78
TI>
<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Graphic: World FX rates Asian stock markets ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Reporting by Himanshi Akhand in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
