EM ASIA FX-Asian currencies dip on Fed speculation, peso rises

* Chinese yuan at 1-week low against dollar

* Philippine peso, Japanese yen sole gainers

(Adds details, updates numbers)

By Ambar Warrick

Oct 17 (Reuters) - Most Asian currencies retreated against

the dollar on Tuesday as the greenback strengthened following a

report that U.S. President Donald Trump was favouring a policy

hawk as the next head of the Federal Reserve.

The dollar rose against a basket of currencies,

supported by a rise in Treasury yields after Bloomberg reported

that President Trump was favouring Stanford economist John

Taylor, seen as more hawkish than current Chair Janet Yellen, to

head the U.S. central bank.

"I think the implication is that it would be positive for

the U.S. dollar rather than negative for Asian currencies per

se. If you look at Asian currencies today, they're reflecting

the possibility of a stronger dollar if John Taylor becomes the

FOMC chair, as among all the candidates I think Taylor is the

most hawkish," said Sim Moh Siong, FX strategist at Bank of

Singapore.

A hawkish Fed could prompt investors to shift into U.S.

assets on the prospect of better yields, triggering capital

outflows from emerging markets.

The Chinese yuan dipped to a 1-week low against

the dollar. The currency is expected to remain subdued in the

near term, with investors cautious ahead of a key leadership

meeting and other economic data due later in the week.

"While big political decisions are being made, the Chinese

economy appears to remain robust, evidenced by recent solid

trade and CPI data, as Beijing's latitude to allow policy to

engineer a "soft landing" remains intact," Mizuho Bank said in a

research note.

The Korean won also edged down against the

dollar. Tensions over the Korean peninsula persisted, as South

Korea and the United States began week-long joint navy drills in

the waters around the Korean peninsula on Monday, amid high

tensions over North Korea's nuclear and missile programme.

The Singapore dollar fell against the dollar. The

island state's non-oil domestic exports in September fell

unexpectedly from a year earlier, due to a contraction in

electronic shipments.

PESO

The Philippine peso rose to a 1-week high against

the dollar on Tuesday in stark contrast to weakness in other

Asian currencies.

"I think the rise today could be due to the remittance

numbers for August, which were higher than expected," said

Saktiandi Supaat, head of FX research at Maybank in Singapore.

Remittances in the Philippines rose to a 5-month high in

August. The country is one of the world's largest recipients of

remittances, with millions of Filipinos working overseas sending

home money that helps power domestic consumption, a key driver

of economic growth.

The following table shows rates for Asian currencies against

the dollar at 0139 GMT.

CURRENCIES VS U.S. DOLLAR

Change on the day at

0419 GMT

Currency Latest bid Previous day Pct Move

Japan yen 112.080 112.18 +0.09

Sing dlr 1.355 1.3510 -0.30

Taiwan dlr 30.180 30.158 -0.07

Korean won 1131.700 1127.8 -0.34

Baht 33.080 33.06 -0.06

Peso 51.300 51.39 +0.18

Rupiah 13492.000 13480 -0.09

Rupee 64.893 64.74 -0.24

Ringgit 4.222 4.2155 -0.14

Yuan 6.602 6.5890 -0.20

Change so far in 2017

Currency Latest bid End 2016 Pct Move

Japan yen 112.080 117.07 +4.45

Sing dlr 1.355 1.4490 +6.94

Taiwan dlr 30.180 32.279 +6.95

Korean won 1131.700 1207.70 +6.72

Baht 33.080 35.80 +8.22

Peso 51.300 49.72 -3.08

Rupiah 13492.000 13470 -0.16

Rupee 64.893 67.92 +4.67

Ringgit 4.222 4.4845 +6.23

Yuan 6.602 6.9467 +5.22

(Editing by Jacqueline Wong)