EMERGING MARKETS-Asian currencies fall on firm dollar, stocks lower

* S. Korean won weakens 0.4% * Singapore stocks fall 1% * Malaysia rate decision due on Thursday By Ayushman Ojha May 8 (Reuters) – Asian currencies were weaker on Wednesday against the firm greenback, while stocks in the region halted their bullish run as investors took cautious approach on the U.S. rate cut path, after optimism following last week’s soft jobs data faded. The South Korean won led losses amongst emerging Asian currencies with a 0.4% fall, while Thai baht lost 0.2%. The Indonesian rupiah fell 0.3%. The country’s finance minister on Tuesday said volatility in forex markets over the last month needs to be monitored and carefully managed, adding that strength in dollar was having a more immediate effect. The dollar has remained dominant this whole year, and “the dollar is going to remain resilient because in our view, the Fed is only going to cut one time this year,” said Alvin Tan, head of Asia FX strategy at RBC Capital Markets. “The market by anticipating more than one cut by the Fed, is overdone in the dovish expectation of the Fed,” Tan added. In other currencies, the Philippine peso fell 0.3% and the Taiwanese dollar fell 0.2%. Both countries reported lower-than-expected inflation numbers on Tuesday. The Malaysian ringgit fell 0.2% ahead of country’s key interest rate decision on Thursday. The central bank held rates steady at the last meeting but noted that the ringgit was undervalued. “It is not a very acute situation for the (Malaysian) central bank, so I don’t think they will be driven to hike just because of the exchange rate,” Alvin Tan said. Meanwhile, most stocks in the region were lower as investors assess the U.S. Federal Reserve’s rate cut timings and the number of cuts this year, after last week’s softer-than-expected jobs data gave a dovish signal that had buoyed regional equities markets. Stocks in Indonesia fell as much as 0.7%, while Singapore shares lost as much as 1%. Philippine shares were down 0.7%, while stocks in Thailand were largely muted. Shares in Taiwan and South Korea both inched 0.1% higher, while Malaysian stocks were largely unchanged. HIGHLIGHTS: ** Indonesia’s FX reserves drop to $136.2 bln at end-April ** China’s yuan slips as hawkish Fed comments boost dollar ** Bank of Japan issues stronger warning over yen’s impact on policy #NAME? COUNTRY FX RIC FX FX INDE STOCK STOCK DAILY YTD X S S YTD % % DAILY % % Japan -0.31 -9.0 <.N2 -1.48 14.33 9 25> China <CNY=CFX -0.09 -1.7 <.SS -0.41 5.37 S> 6 EC> India +0.02 -0.3 <.NS -0.26 2.36 4 EI> Indones -0.28 -4.2 <.JK -0.60 -2.64 ia 9 SE> Malaysi -0.17 -3.2 <.KL 0.02 10.41 a 5 SE> Philipp -0.26 -3.5 <.PS -0.32 2.29 ines 6 I> S.Korea <KRW=KFT -0.42 -5.7 <.KS 0.10 3.08 C> 0 11> Singapo -0.15 -2.7 <.ST -0.92 0.91 re 2 I> Taiwan -0.21 -5.2 <.TW 0.05 15.24 5 II> Thailan -0.22 -7.5 <.SE -0.01 -2.79 d 1 TI> (Reporting by Ayushman Ojha in Bengaluru; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)

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